I agree - my first thought was, the one flaw in Thom's thesis is that Trump was elected before the pandemic (albeit without the popular vote - and with a little help from his friends). Quite possibly, even without the trauma aspect of pandemic Covid, all the extra exposure Trump got with his (to many of us embarrassing) televised Covid u…
I agree - my first thought was, the one flaw in Thom's thesis is that Trump was elected before the pandemic (albeit without the popular vote - and with a little help from his friends). Quite possibly, even without the trauma aspect of pandemic Covid, all the extra exposure Trump got with his (to many of us embarrassing) televised Covid update sessions and his lies and constant presence in the the media worked it's magic. Advertising is all about exposure and repetition - think brainwashing. Trump's overconfidence in uncertain times had impact too in cult development. Assuredly putting down everyone who disagrees with him helps to elevate him in many people's eyes, even now. Trump continues to repeat lies over and over again because he knows the power of repetition! And he has Vance and Congressional Republicans amplifying and extending the repetition. (The effectiveness is starting to cause me to develop PTSD!)
I agree - my first thought was, the one flaw in Thom's thesis is that Trump was elected before the pandemic (albeit without the popular vote - and with a little help from his friends). Quite possibly, even without the trauma aspect of pandemic Covid, all the extra exposure Trump got with his (to many of us embarrassing) televised Covid update sessions and his lies and constant presence in the the media worked it's magic. Advertising is all about exposure and repetition - think brainwashing. Trump's overconfidence in uncertain times had impact too in cult development. Assuredly putting down everyone who disagrees with him helps to elevate him in many people's eyes, even now. Trump continues to repeat lies over and over again because he knows the power of repetition! And he has Vance and Congressional Republicans amplifying and extending the repetition. (The effectiveness is starting to cause me to develop PTSD!)