Are there previous historical examples of cult-like followings of US political candidates?
Are there previous historical examples of cult-like followings of US political candidates?
(This post was intended for [email protected], but as it seems they don't allow text posts, I'm posting it here)
This post will likely not go over well with everyone and some people may not agree with the premise of the question. Mods please remove if not allowed.
I am curious if the MAGA-esque approach to politics is new for the US, or if there have been other examples of similar political movements which may be considered "cult-like". To better define what I mean, here are some examples:
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Large amounts of signs bearing a candidate's name being shown by single individuals (e.g. big trucks covered in Trump signs everywhere)
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Use of a candidate name over the US flag
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Use of a kind of supporter uniform (e.g. the red MAGA hat)
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The "alternative facts" of MAGA, where debate can be impossible because supporters believe anyone who is a detractor must be lying
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In some cases, voter intimidation or coercion from staunch supporters
It seems to me that some of this is new but I'd love to hear other thoughts. I have heard and seen many relatively obvious parallels to German politics in the 20s-40s, but I'm specifically wondering if anything similar has ever been seen in the US before.
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I think John F. Kennedy qualified; he's been practically deified since his assassination, and his supporters were MAGA-level enthusiasts. Just the sheer level of conspiracy theory around his assassination, missing from all other assassinations - successful or attempted - is a good indicator. Even the attempted Trump assassination, which generated considerable tin-hat response, is now almost completely forgotten; certainly, nobody's talking about it in mainstream forums.
In my opinion, Kennedy was an incredible president and great statesman, but yeah, I think you could reasonably claim there was a cult of personality around him.
This is a huge reach and false equivalency. There is a difference between being a pop culture focus of a moment where you're mom was compelled to volunteer at his local election office and wear a button versus the maga bullshit that OP describes.
No. It's never been to this level, or close for that matter. Not because a candidate didn't want it, but because society maintained a basic level of decency and civil education that made today's depths impossible at scale really. Of course a huge focus of the last 50 years for Republicans has been denying access to and attacking public education to help form the undereducated and easily frightened mass that they now use to support trump. And then social media feeds and predatory news algorithms were probably the nail in the coffin to break that once held floor of civility.
Not on the same scale as trump, but there was an American Nazi party and there's the kkk. Those are probably your closest analogies in this country.
Search for "Kennedy." Long before Trump was a "thing" in the American zeitgeist.
Even the attempted Trump assassination, which generated considerable tin-hat response, is now almost completely forgotten; certainly, nobodyβs talking about it in mainstream forums.
Well yeah, that's how attempted assassinations work. People don't remember the ones that don't work, they remember the ones that do. If it did succeed then it would be all anyone would talk about. The outcome is what matters in these situations, and greatly changes when and how people talk about it. That's just how these things go.
Right. I'll bet a lot of people here don't remember, or never knew that someone tried to assassinate Ronald Reagan.
The assassination attempt on Reagan also failed, and was bigger news, for far longer. Not JF Kennedy level, but it was more enduring than the attempt on Trump.
The news cycle on the Trump attempt was astonishingly brief.
Where is the damage on his ear?