The Cult of Donald Trump

In response to my recent post America Takes the Plunge, Duane Flanigan comments: “I hope all of tRUMP’s troll cultists die. Let God sort it out.”

I’m not sure you mean this literally, though I know some do.  Personally, I wish for them what I wish for members of any other similar group, i.e., that they wake up and come to their senses.  People do this constantly, though it’s hard, as it requires intense self-inspection and willingness to admit error, which many people simply don’t possess.

This is a bizarre twist in the U.S. body politic, and yes, Duane, it has many attributes of what we commonly call a “cult,” i.e., slavish devotion to one person regardless of anything he has done, is doing, or could possibly do in the future.  Virtually everything that comes out of Trump’s mouth is a lie that is calculated to make him look good, or an enemy look bad–or both simultaneously.  He has no honest concern for anyone but himself, and his followers simply cannot see this.

It’s not as if we haven’t had cults in the United States; but we certainly haven’t had any with 60 million members and its own television network.