Trump and Us
What He Says and Why People Listen

Trump won the presidency not because of partisanship, policy, or economic factors but because of how he makes people feel.

Roderick P. Hart (Author)

9781108796415, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 14 February 2020

280 pages, 9 b/w illus. 26 tables
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.7 cm, 0.46 kg

'This book is a brilliant dissection, by a renowned communications scholar, of the political messaging that Donald Trump used to win the presidency in 2016 … Many readers of this book will, therefore, probably come away from it feeling as if they had just witnessed a real-life autopsy: repulsed, but also awed … a compelling, insightful examination of Trump's successful campaign rhetoric.' Mel Laracey, Congress & the Presidency

Why did 62 million Americans vote for Donald Trump? Trump and Us offers a fresh perspective on this question, taking seriously the depth and breadth of Trump's support. An expert in political language, Roderick P. Hart turns to Trump's words, voters' remarks, and media commentary for insight. The book offers the first systematic rhetorical analysis of Trump's 2016 campaign and early presidency, using text analysis and archives of earlier presidential campaigns to uncover deep emotional undercurrents in the country and provide historical comparison. Trump and Us pays close attention to the emotional dimensions of politics, above and beyond cognition and ideology. Hart argues it was not partisanship, policy, or economic factors that landed Trump in the Oval Office but rather how Trump made people feel.

Part I. Feeling Conflicted: 1. Trump's arrival
Part II. Feeling Ignored: 2. Trump's simplicity
3. Trump's populism
Part II. Feeling Trapped: 4. Trump's passions
5. Trump's stories
Part IV. Feeling Besieged: 6. Trump's medicine
7. Trump's journalism
Part V. Feeling Tired: 8. Trump's novelty
9. Trump's spontaneity
Part VI. Feeling Resolute: 10. Trump's lessons.

Subject Areas: Media, information & communication industries [KNT], Comparative politics [JPB], Sociology [JHB], Media studies [JFD], Society & social sciences [J]