NOTE: The following is a response to “Trump plays on voters’ fears in Fox News town hall with Hannity“, by Nicole Russell. The editorial was published 5 September 2024 on USA Today.com. All quotes and paraphrases are from that source unless otherwise noted.

It is rare indeed these days that a self-proclaimed conservative offers a criticism of Donald Trump that demonstrates genuine disbelief, almost disgust, at his appeal and how he has transformed the GOP into a personality cult rather than a party of ideas. Russell’s thesis, in a nutshell, is this: “Trump keeps it simple – and people like that”. This has been apparent since he started his 2016 campaign. What is far less apparent is whether this simplicity is a tactical choice to appear in tune with his followers or, as his opponents have said for years, it is simply a demonstration of his complete lack of knowledge and his disinterest in even basic policy crafting. He tends to latch onto a keyword or phrase seems to think if he repeats it enough times people will mistake repetition for comprehension. Previously it was slogans like “Build the wall” or “Lock her up” which was fine for selling bumper stickers and t-shirts, but it hardly worked as actual policy. In the Harrisburg town hall (which I’m sure was little more than a carefully choreographed series of remarks and speakers designed to prompt Trumpian outbursts rather than spark policy discussions) he seems to have gotten his hooks into immigration and fracking, addressing neither in any greater depth than “fracking good” and “migrants bad”. Interspersed was the usual buffet of exaggerations, hyperbole and fantasy that we have come to expect from the man.

All of this, however, confirms what Russell identified as a driving force behind Trump’s otherwise bewildering popularity over the decade: his knack for condensing complex issues like foreign policy, socioeconomics and immigration into easily digested wafers (wafers in both size and substance) has won him many disciples. Contrast this approach to that of the Harris campaign and, for that matter, Democratic campaigns going back many years. Democrats have a reputation of trying to run ‘proper’ campaigns and discuss issues in a more academic way. If Republicans are motivated by bullying and slogans, Democrats are motivated by fact-checking and statistics. Trump says whatever comes into his head whether it’s accurate, believable or even plausible; he then proceeds to declare any attempts at correcting him part of the liberal conspiracy that has made his persecution on par with that of a martyr. Harris makes a more honest attempt to use facts and figures responsibly in an effort to appeal to the electorate’s logos rather than its pathos. It is, in some respects, the political equivalent of going to the circus versus attending a lecture.

This all falls perfectly in line with the persona Donald Trump has presented since he first decided to run for president. Personally, I have said since 2016 that Donald Trump has no firm convictions one way or another and that he is an opportunistic parasite that managed to sink its teeth into the psyche (and wallets) of a vulnerable segment of America: people who have been accustomed to being on top and now, whether rightly or wrongly, believe their beliefs, their livelihoods, their language and even their identity as Americans are under attack from liberal elites. What Trump has never adequately addressed, however, is how he had this apparent epiphany that transformed him from a hedonistic New York City real estate tycoon with a penchant for divorce and dalliances to a fervent champion of the middle-class and stalwart defender of small-town values and Christian ideals. The conversion of Donald Trump would, if it were true, rival that of Saul on the road to Damascus. I firmly believe that he has always been a kind of useful idiot to the more reactionary elements of the political right and that so long as he has the support of powerful people he will seek out power.

Donald Trump, despite his claims of savant level intelligence in any field you care to name, is not a complicated man. His only real genius is the sleight of hand needed to fool millions of voters into thinking he gives a tinker’s damn about their wellbeing. The reason he so often resorts to childish name-calling and aimless nattering is because he has nothing substantive to say. Fortunately for him, his audiences aren’t interested in the mechanics of governance or the delicacies of policymaking – they just want to Build the Wall!