“Make America great again” is a slogan and it’s dangerous to read too far beyond that, but Trump is a salesperson who tries to manage the emotional reaction rather than taking you through the transaction. What he does, is invite you to buy in by way of trial close.
The nuanced acceptance of what he's saying is America isn’t great. The moment people start listening beyond this, they’re accepting the first part of his proposition. Most people can probably point to a time in their life where they considered things to be better. Even if they can’t, they can probably imagine a vague point in recent history where America stood mightier. Nostalgia is always a powerful tool if harnessed. Trump’s statements however are deliberately open ended allowing the listener to frame it on their own temporal horizon. They start to become co-authors of his narrative
He doesn’t say what ‘great’ is, he never tells you how he’s going to do it, he never sets out a benchmark capable of judging it. What he does instead is tell that he’ll do it, and that you want it.
Take his statement on Obamacare
“We’re going to repeal and replace Obamacare with something much, much better. It’s going to be great, and everyone will love it”
Any chance of sharing with us what is Donald? No. All he’s asking American's to do is fantasise about their best case scenario of universal coverage and low premiums, and fill in the blanks based on their aspirations. He goes further though by telling them they’ll “love it” –typical salesman, but it’s this kind of social proofing that becomes contagious when it takes hold. You only need to look at the way he brands his merchandise. Once a critical mass approve of something (or love it), everyone else feels obliged to want it too. The whole thing becomes unstoppable. It's little wonder staid politicians are struggling to get his number, and when he reinforces it with bullying bombast delivered from a position of personal success (always evidenced by wealth) it starts to become overwhelming
“I will build a great wall with a great big beautiful door”
I doubt his wall will be much more than ugly grey concrete myself, but already he’s using words like “great” and “beautiful” to mask what it is. People are being asked to attach a different emotional approval to it as they try and imagine this lovely wall with some aesthetically beautiful sliding door. People are being encouraged to look past the sale and are instead being conditioned to how they should respond, and approve the product
Obama was a skilled orator, but he invited people into the decision making process, often explaining to them what options he had, how he appraised them, and then going onto justify his decisions in line with what he rejected and why. Trump just deals in sentiment and lacks specifics. Instead he paints end product pictures which give people illusory hope based on his own personal success (note how often when he’s placed under pressure he resorts to bank balances, trading performance, or some other approval rating proxy). The other thing he tends do though is tell people what he thinks, or what he wants, and then invites them to agree with him, whilst leaving those who don't slightly stained by their refusal because they don't get the reflected glory of his success as a self styled 'winner'. In other words he dismisses them as 'losers'
This whole issue of campaigning on nebulous visions is also quite difficult to pick apart. How can you say you oppose 'making American great again'? All you can hope to do is point out that its pie in the sky sentiment, but this leaves you wide open to allegations of lacking ambition, and you will nearly always appear unfavourably alongside the big talker if trying to introduce some sensible restraint. People don't really warm to reasons as to why things can't be done, even when there are seriously large question marks over his promises. Alternatively you might try and extract detail from him (never easy given his penchant for inventing figures on the spot) but if you do this, you're moving onto his territory and entertaining the authenticity of his claim, and even lending it legitimacy
Another thing he’s doing is externalising insecurities in others as threats, be they real or imaginary. He tends to reel off a whole list of bogeymen, ISIS, China, Washington, the media, Mexico or anybody he can think of who he doesn’t believe will, or can vote for him, and are therefore safe to be put in the file marked ‘expendable’ in his binary world view. If you throw enough bete noire candidates out there, you’ll find one who’ll gain traction with the consumer. Its a scattergun approach. Here's your list of bogeymen as approved by Donald J Trump which one do you want blame? Trump invites people to attach blame to others, and people being what they are, will normally be happy to accept the deal if it relieves them of any contributory culpability. Ultimately it will create division and resentment, but then Trump is more of a salesperson than a societal manager.
Beware the Trump though, the political establishment have rarely had to contend with someone like this, and their heads are indeed spinnin'. I think they probably sat back expecting him to burn spectacularly, and he certainly ripped up the orthodoxy, running up a whole sequence of gaffs that should have seen him driven out the camapign months ago if normal rules applied. It didn't though. His own poll ratings improved. With their barrier fire wall unable to contain the Donald, the onus fell on the other candidates to bring him down, and between them they've either been to frightened, unable, or simply to bewildered to know what to do next.
This shouldn't have happened. Guess what though. It just has.
