Hating on Trump Has Itself Become a Cult
When Donald Trump supporters were compared to cult members at TruthDig, one phenomenon was ignored: some of the anti-Trump movement is a cult as well, described by Scott Adams as Trump Derangement Syndrome.
The election of Trump to the Presidency was a 9-11 level shock to the Democratic Party. So now, similar to post 9-11, many are convinced they need to be in blind lockstep to fight evil, in this case, Trump.
Trump is horrible, no doubt. His language uses vagaries to fuel right-wing rage and violence, as in “there are good people on both sides of the debate.” With that simple statement, he refers simultaneously to supporters of Confederate statues and fascists who kill peaceful protesters. It is no accident. The phrasing allows Trump to telegraph one messaging while publicly embracing another.
Trump prioritizes grandstanding over policy, as when he claimed to have a cure for Coronavirus in bleach and colored lights. He lies when confronted with evidence of his inaction or failings, which is daily. A credible claim can be made that he is uniquely horrible, as a President and a man.
None of that means there isn’t an Anti-Trump Cult.
The anti-Trump cult has Trump as its leader. Its members are always reacting to him. What Trump says, what Trump plans, his jokes and his hair are all the center of their daily dialog. They wring their hands and tell us the end is near.
Trump knows he rules their reactions, too. You can see him laughing to himself as he throws out crazy and watches the Anti-Trump Cult jump around in outrage. It is funny, in a way, how people who see themselves as the elite react and become apoplectic.
Trump is not the only person laughing. So are his supporters. Trump supporters are the people who were sold the neo-liberal lie that the technocrats and over-educated know best while regular Americans' security and money were stolen through outsourcing and cheap imports. They finally had enough and elected a clown.
To be sure, Trump has done some horrible stuff. But criticism of brutal policies differs from mindless and baseless claims of treason and blackmail. But the more they say “Russia! Russia! Russia!” the more they believe only they are the saviors, and anyone who disagrees with them are enemies.
The anti-Trumpers have no other designated leader, they always look to Trump for focus. The Democratic Party keeps trying to put someone in the chair of Anti-Trump, and have settled on Joe “Rapey Fingers” Biden. Hillary Clinton really tried hard to be their leader, but no one would have it. Robert Mueller was a prospect for this role for a while, but he seems to have been lost to Alzheimers.
Instead, they look to their favorite source of rage: Trump. He never disappoints.
The anti-Trump cult hates everything Donald Trump does reflexively. He reaches out to North Korea and makes more progress in 18 months than the foreign policy establishment has in 40 years. "Boo hiss! Terrible! We want to stand in place even longer!" cry the anti-Trump cult.
And if someone strays from the orthodoxy of lament, they are attacked as being a “Russian asset” or some other equally silly accusation. They follow President Trump in their hatred and their bile. They watch his every move and react, react, react.
It has made them crazy.
The Anti-Trump Cult cuddles up to their soulless hypocrisy as if that makes them more hero than idiot. It doesn’t matter that Obama also put children in cages, Obama’s Department of Justice prosecuted anti-torture whistleblowers, and Obama’s ICE actually went to court to avoid basic regulations for children in ICE detention. Did I mention the children were in cages? The Kill List, the failed drone war, and assassination of U.S. citizens without a trial. Yes, that included a six-year-old girl.
Instead, the Anti-Trump Cult attacks Trump with all their repressed guilt. They are afraid that people not in their elite club could do the same things as their guy did. And like Jamal Khashoggi, they would not be immune from strangulation and dismemberment in a government facility.
In the end, Trump is truly awful and leading his followers like Jim Jones led his: to their deaths. Lockstep harping and reacting just drives you crazy and makes you look ridiculous in the process. The mental framing for Trump Derangement Syndrome is just as much a cult as some of Donald Trump’s followers. It has a charismatic leader, permits no dissent or debate, and casts people out who violate the rules. They are what they are criticizing.
Trump is horrible, no doubt. His language uses vagaries to fuel right-wing rage and violence, as in “there are good people on both sides of the debate.” With that simple statement, he refers simultaneously to supporters of Confederate statues and fascists who kill peaceful protesters. It is no accident. The phrasing allows Trump to telegraph one messaging while publicly embracing another.
Trump prioritizes grandstanding over policy, as when he claimed to have a cure for Coronavirus in bleach and colored lights. He lies when confronted with evidence of his inaction or failings, which is daily. A credible claim can be made that he is uniquely horrible, as a President and a man.
None of that means there isn’t an Anti-Trump Cult.
Trump Himself Controls the Anti-Trump Cult
It is a truism that if you do everything someone tells you to do, they control you; and, if you always do the opposite of what someone tells you, they still control you. That describes the anti-Trump cult to a tee.The anti-Trump cult has Trump as its leader. Its members are always reacting to him. What Trump says, what Trump plans, his jokes and his hair are all the center of their daily dialog. They wring their hands and tell us the end is near.
Trump knows he rules their reactions, too. You can see him laughing to himself as he throws out crazy and watches the Anti-Trump Cult jump around in outrage. It is funny, in a way, how people who see themselves as the elite react and become apoplectic.
Trump is not the only person laughing. So are his supporters. Trump supporters are the people who were sold the neo-liberal lie that the technocrats and over-educated know best while regular Americans' security and money were stolen through outsourcing and cheap imports. They finally had enough and elected a clown.
“No Think Zone"
Newsflash: if you keep reacting to a crazy person, you become crazy yourself. The Anti-Trump Cult has descended to that level.To be sure, Trump has done some horrible stuff. But criticism of brutal policies differs from mindless and baseless claims of treason and blackmail. But the more they say “Russia! Russia! Russia!” the more they believe only they are the saviors, and anyone who disagrees with them are enemies.
The anti-Trumpers have no other designated leader, they always look to Trump for focus. The Democratic Party keeps trying to put someone in the chair of Anti-Trump, and have settled on Joe “Rapey Fingers” Biden. Hillary Clinton really tried hard to be their leader, but no one would have it. Robert Mueller was a prospect for this role for a while, but he seems to have been lost to Alzheimers.
Instead, they look to their favorite source of rage: Trump. He never disappoints.
The anti-Trump cult hates everything Donald Trump does reflexively. He reaches out to North Korea and makes more progress in 18 months than the foreign policy establishment has in 40 years. "Boo hiss! Terrible! We want to stand in place even longer!" cry the anti-Trump cult.
And if someone strays from the orthodoxy of lament, they are attacked as being a “Russian asset” or some other equally silly accusation. They follow President Trump in their hatred and their bile. They watch his every move and react, react, react.
It has made them crazy.
Crazy Anti-Trumpers’ Denial
For two years, "Russiagate" was the self-soothing mantra for a neo-liberal crowd who couldn’t imagine they lost fairly. When their “hero” Robert Mueller proved to be a blithering old man who seemed an escapee from a nursing home, the debacle was ignored.The Anti-Trump Cult cuddles up to their soulless hypocrisy as if that makes them more hero than idiot. It doesn’t matter that Obama also put children in cages, Obama’s Department of Justice prosecuted anti-torture whistleblowers, and Obama’s ICE actually went to court to avoid basic regulations for children in ICE detention. Did I mention the children were in cages? The Kill List, the failed drone war, and assassination of U.S. citizens without a trial. Yes, that included a six-year-old girl.
Instead, the Anti-Trump Cult attacks Trump with all their repressed guilt. They are afraid that people not in their elite club could do the same things as their guy did. And like Jamal Khashoggi, they would not be immune from strangulation and dismemberment in a government facility.
In the end, Trump is truly awful and leading his followers like Jim Jones led his: to their deaths. Lockstep harping and reacting just drives you crazy and makes you look ridiculous in the process. The mental framing for Trump Derangement Syndrome is just as much a cult as some of Donald Trump’s followers. It has a charismatic leader, permits no dissent or debate, and casts people out who violate the rules. They are what they are criticizing.
Imagine This
Imagine that Donald Trump was right. Could you see Rachel Maddow telling the world this great news? Or rather, could you see her broadcasting false information just because Donald Trump told just one, helpful truth? OK, forget Rachel Maddow. How about Hillary Clinton?
The true test of the Anti-Trump Cult is that a person could not admit that Trump was right about something. Anything. But they can’t. Everything he does is awful, and as a result everything they say is justified. What they can’t see is Trump is playing them. Oh, and that impending defeat in November, 2020.
