David French writes about the Rage and Joy of MAGA Americans.
It’s hard to encapsulate a culture in 22 seconds, but this July 4 video tweet from Representative Andy Ogles accomplishes the nearly impossible. For those who don’t want to click through, the tweet features Ogles, a cheerful freshman Republican from Tennessee, wishing his followers a happy Fourth of July. The text of the greeting is remarkable only if you don’t live in MAGAland:
Hey guys, Congressman Andy Ogles here, wishing you a happy and blessed Fourth of July. Hey, remember our Founding Fathers. It’s we the people that are in charge of this country, not a leftist minority. Look, the left is trying to destroy our country and our family, and they’re coming after you. Have a blessed Fourth of July. Be safe. Have fun. God bless America.
Can something be cheerful and dark at the same time? Can a holiday message be both normal and so very strange? If so, then Ogles pulled it off. This is a man smiling in a field as a dog sniffs happily behind him. The left may be “coming after you,” as he warns, but the vibe isn’t catastrophic or even worried, rather a kind of friendly, generic patriotism. They’re coming for your family! Have a great day!
French reveals that he lives in Tennessee outside of Nashville. And I also have been living in deep red territory. I never noticed the MAGAs were especially joyous. Their grievances are held just under the surface. At the least provocation the sweet old lady will start shrieking about school students using litter boxes instead of restrooms because they identify as cats.
French points out that the MAGAs share a sense of camaraderie. He brings up the Trump boat parades of 2020 — “open air water parties.” He also describes Trump rallies as “festive.” And this —
Or go to a Southeastern Conference football game. The “Let’s Go Brandon” (or sometimes, just “[expletive] Joe Biden”) chant that arises from the student section isn’t delivered with clenched fists and furious anger, but rather through smiles and laughs. The frat bros are having a great time.
Guess who else had great times?
More than 4000 African Americans were killed in racial terror lynchings between 1877 and 1950. Many of these extrajudicial murders were celebratory public spectacles, where thousands of white people, including elected officials and prominent citizens, gathered to witness victims being gruesomely tortured and mutilated. White newspapers advertised these carnival-like events; vendors sold food, photographers printed postcards, and victims’ clothing and body parts were given out as souvenirs.
There’s a connection here, I do believe. French continues,
Why do none of your arguments against Trump penetrate this mind-set? The Trumpists have an easy answer: You’re horrible, and no one should listen to horrible people. Why were Trumpists so vulnerable to insane stolen-election theories? Because they know that you’re horrible and that horrible people are capable of anything, including stealing an election.
At the same time, their own joy and camaraderie insulate them against external critiques that focus on their anger and cruelty. Such charges ring hollow to Trump supporters, who can see firsthand the internal friendliness and good cheer that they experience when they get together with one another. They don’t feel angry — at least not most of the time. They are good, likable people who’ve just been provoked by a distant and alien “left” that many of them have never meaningfully encountered firsthand.
Let’s just say they are not in touch with themselves. French goes on to say that we need to look at the “joy” as well as the rage, but I think the roots of the alleged joy are found in the cameraderie. The need to belong to the pack, to feel connected, is strong here. What they find in each other is validation. Their biases are validated. Their fears are validated. Their world view is validated. Validation like that feels really good, especially to people who otherwise feel alienated from their larger culture. The MAGA movement is wonderfully gratifying to a lot of people. That’s why it would be very hard to give it up once one is sucked in.
Yesteday Paul Waldman wrote about the extreme ambiguities in the MAGA world view, as displayed in political rhetoric:
On one hand, they tell voters that America’s deepest problems have been solved and that we bask in the light of the Almighty’s favor. On the other, they insist that our country is a nightmare of moral depravity and suffering.
This is worth reading (no paywall). Note this part also:
A DeSantis speech is little more than a litany of powerful enemies destroying Americans’ lives, whom he plans to finally vanquish by using the power of the government.
In this telling, every institution has become the enemy of “normal” Americans: the media, the education system, the military, big business, the government, all of it. Prominent media figures on the right tell their audiences that political developments are created by “demons” and Satan himself, who apparently rampage through the land as they please. It’s a wonder any of us get home alive at the end of the day.
DeSantis’s speeches aren’t getting much traction with voters, however, although that may be because his messages are mostly aimed at people who already belong to Trump. But it explains how thoroughly they are innoculated against facts and the real world in general.
Steve M. at No More Mister Nice Blog writes:
I agree with French that the MAGAs seem happy, and I think the reason is not just that they’re happy and friendly within their bubble — it’s that the societal breakdown they feel is taking place is something that they’ve “never meaningfully encountered firsthand.” …
…No one’s really coming for their guns — they have plenty, and it’s easy to buy more. No one’s really coming for their red meat or their big-ass SUVs. No one’s forcing them to be gay or bi or trans. Politically, they run half the states. They run the Supreme Court and will control it for decades. They run the House, and they have an excellent chance of taking the Senate and the White House next year.
Most of the stuff the righties are worked up about are nonsensical. We don’t have “open borders.” “Critical race theory” was not being taught in public elementary schools. Elected Democrats are neither Communists nor “groomers.” There is no “cultural Marxism.” “Woke” doesn’t refer to people being out to get you.
The bottom line, though, is that while the things they fear are mostly boogiemen, what’s really eating them is that they aren’t in total control. Their candidates lose some elections. They don’t control all the state legislatures. They don’t control the Senate or White House. Movies get made, books get published, things get said on television, that righties do not like. As long as there are people in America who are not with them and not under their control, they are going to feel rage.
And since what passes as their “political ideology” is utterly irrational, there is no reasoning with them. And this is something the great sociologist/psychologist/philosopher Erich Fromm wrote about decades ago. In his essay on “The Authoritarian Personality,” published in 1957, he wrote,
When I speak of sadism as the active side of the authoritarian personality, many people may be surprised because sadism is usually understood as the tendency to torment and to cause pain. But actually, this is not the point of sadism. The different forms of sadism which we can observe have their root in a striving, which is to master and control another individual, to make him a helpless object of one’s will, to become his ruler, to dispose over him as one sees fit and without limitations. Humiliation and enslavement are just means to this purpose, and the most radical means to this is to make him suffer; as there is no greater power over a person than to make him suffer, to force him to endure pains without resistance.
The cruelty may not be the point, but it sure feels like it. And of course the members of this cult are never so happy as when they are displaying their power, whether it’s in boat parades or chanting stupid things at sports events or putting their feet on Nancy Pelosi’s desk. Happy happy joy joy.
Fromm is always worth reading. His observations are, of course, based on the rise of fascism in Germany, which he fled in 1933. I like what he says about the symbiosis of authoritarian followers and leaders. Both the leader and the followers are deeply alienated and frightened, but together they give each other power.
The sadistic-authoritarian character is as dependent on the ruled as the masochistic -authoritarian character on the ruler. However the image is misleading. As long as he holds power, the leader appears — to himself and to others — strong and powerful. His powerlessness becomes only apparent when he has lost his power, when he can no longer devour others, when he is on his own.
I am more and more persuaded that Trump kept his boxes and boxes of documents because they were an emotional crutch. They helped him feel connected to the power he had as POTUS. The man has no fortitude at all. He’s nearly reached the point of screaming for his binky.
Yay!!!
You're ok!
I was beginning to worry.
I am just a lurker here. I come by every day, sometimes several times a day.
I am just glad every time there is a new post with replies.
To quote, "I know nothing and can prove it" So, this is likely my only action, but understand I really appreciate this site.
Fromm is always worth reading …
Thanks for the great analysis, maha.
When you talk about our Reich-Wingers need for validation, one of the ones they most desperately seek, is the (preferably public) acknowledgement of their obviously superior intelligence (at least in their own minds).
But let us not 'gild the liar'… Lily, I meant. "Gild the lily."
Let's tell it like it is: These people are a bit… Dim. They were born that way:
Dim.
And they know it.
They sense it.
They can feel it.
And they believe that other kids know it too – whether they do or not.
They're never accepted by the "cool kids."
And that's what turns them into 'cruel kids.'
As part of their Sadism, their need for others to bow to their superior intelligence, can justify their use of violence.
These are some truly ugly examples of "people."
Humans.
Humans without humanity.
Their souls are ugly.
And 'Thank Dog,' I'm not one of them.
Humans overcome with jealousy most of the time..
"The man has no fortitude at all. He’s nearly reached the point of screaming for his binky"
Yet he is the front runner and our media info-stream has decided that he must be considered, seriously. Saw a story yesterday on CNN, quaint, folksy Stump was in Iowa or somewhere and didn't know what a DQ blizzard was. Isn't that cute? Yes Abby Phillips, the serious anchor who we are supposed to take seriously mused how cute that was. Stump Mr. fast food “expert” and the blizzard, look it's Ice cream. The man tried to and is trying again to destroy this country. He's owned by the Russians. He's under felony indictment; we have hours of video, he stole top secret documents, he raped a women. Covering him as a “celebrity” means you don’t believe any of the charges, it means you think it’s all a witch hunt, fake. But because 60 million or so people support him, our media establishment has decided it just pays better to play along. It's a fucking disgrace. The problem really isn't Stump or the deplorables, it's the "liberal" mainstream corporate media, he could not exist without them, he gives them what they need, it’s the only thing Stump needs to get right.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Zb35-ZRMUE
I'm going to shift the discussion from MAGA to Evangelicals, there's a considerable overlap between the two. Evangelicals absolutely feel joy. When Ogle wishes his viewer a Blessed Fourth, that's who he's addressing.
Let’s just say they are not in touch with themselves. French goes on to say that we need to look at the “joy” as well as the rage, but I think the roots of the alleged joy are found in the camaraderie. The need to belong to the pack, to feel connected, is strong here. What they find in each other is validation. Their biases are validated. Their fears are validated. Their worldview is validated. Validation like that feels really good, especially to people who otherwise feel alienated from their larger culture.
I’d say Evangelicals are very in touch with themselves, too much so. The world out there frightens them. The Evangelical subculture provides a very supportive space for these people. And it’s not just camaraderie, it’s a genuine deeper spiritual joy that animates these people.
The problem is, it’s a bit too much like nursery school. They’re given to simple answers and shun anything outside the Biblical WorldView™. They have the kind of minds that always look backward for answers, never forwards. Critical thinking is too hard, and is unnecessary anyway.
Some people spend their entire lives here, others outgrow it. The problem is when these people get drawn into a political movement.
"I’d say Evangelicals are very in touch with themselves"
I don't buy it, they are in touch with some tilted fairy tale, molded to excite then quell their fears. If you believe in spirits you've decided that you can't live without them. Isn't that the opposite of being in touch?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26oBcgkkbMw
@uncledad – I only have time for the shortest of replies
they are in touch with some tilted fairy tale, molded to excite then quell their fears. If you believe in spirits you’ve decided that you can’t live without them. Isn’t that the opposite of being in touch?
It took me awhile to separate out 1) the major spiritual figure who’s at the center of any religion, from 2) the churches, institutions, teachings, etc that are crafted around this person. I call this the packaging.
There are huge numbers of people who get attracted by and caught up in the packaging that is erected around the spiritual figure, but who never really tune into the figure at the center of it.
Then there are those who attune to what the spiritual figure was saying, and teaching, and who try to live their lives accordingly.
To the degree that the packaging helps someone develop this relationship with the spiritual figure and what they taught, it’s good. To the degree that it leads people astray from that, it’s damaging.
If you believe in spirits you’ve decided that you can’t live without them.
It’s less about believing and instead an inner knowing. As far as living without them, you absolutely have the freedom to do so. Most people on this planet are in ego consciousness, which is you believing you’re the master of your own ship, and God is at best an afterthought. The ego is at war with God.
The reality is: you have no idea how you got here, where you’re going after you die. You have no idea how your brain works, where thoughts come from, how your fingernails grow. You can’t make one head of your hair turn color. In this vast universe, you are less than nothing, not even a grain of sand.
If you develop inner knowing (through practices like meditation), you can start to get answers to these kinds of questions. And you start to realize that the inner world is vastly richer than the outer, which is like the skin on an orange. This is what all spiritual figures have taught.
Don’t get tripped up by the packaging, the externals.
"Evangelicals" are a mixed bag. Some of them are genuinely devout. Some of them are more interested in the culture war package that has attached itself to white evangelicalism and don't know the Beatitudes from a toaster.
I would direct you to some of the finest acting you'll find in a John Wayne movie. Johen Wayne isn't in the scene, but the point is a line delivered near the end in answer to the question, "Is that true?" Mr Nightlinger (Roscoe Lee Brown) replies, "If it ain't, it oughta be."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOARPYLOujQ
I'd draw your attention to two words in the English language that are seldom used with the precision they require. "Truth" and "Facts." The right has adopted a philosophy that borders on fact-free while priding itself as the sole arbiters of "Truth." Trump named his social app, "Truth Social." "Truth" as applied by religions and the MAGAs barely pretends to be adherents to facts – "Truth", as proclaimed by a true believer is superior in every way to mere facts.
My argument sounds like a rabid rant from the left until you examine how the propagandists, Limbaugh, Beck, Carlson, Jones and Trump (to name a few) have repeatedly been found out in outright lies. And they have very rarely offered a correction of apology (except under threat of legal action.) Do liberals lie? Heck, yes but when confronted, they usually correct, sometimes apologize, sometimes resign over a serious breach. (Dan Rather) The rabid right, speaking of the House GOP leadership, is entirely enrolled in spreading baseless accusations and slander without any shred of evidence.
The significant point is not that the GOP leadership lies – it's that the GOP followers do not CARE that they are feeding on a steady, relentless diet of…. the English language fails me. It's lies, it's propaganda, it's conspiracy theories and in the aggregate, it's something so vile and toxic to democracy, the only mitigating factor is that it's slow.
There's a "science" dependent entirely on facts and evidence that's coming into play. It's the US legal system. Before anyone points out how imperfect the legal system is, I agree. BUT… Trump is not going to be able to employ the stunts, tricks, and deceptions in a court of law that he's manufacturing at full speed for his audience on Truth Social.
Case in point: I predict Trump will soon move for dismissal on the basis that the DOJ case is motivated by politics, ordered by Biden, directed by Garland, who selected a Trump hater who brought a totally frivolous prosecution. The ONLY law that applies, according to Trump, is the Presidential Records Act, which supersedes all other law and totally clears Defendant Trump. Even Judge Cannon will deny the motion (because if she gives any of the arguments any credence, she creates the grounds for Smith to request she be replaced.) But here's the kicker – once the motion is denied, it's OVER as far as the trial is concerned. None of the ridiculous theory will be allowed by the judge. As soon as the defense tries to attach the prosecution to politics, to Biden, or to any peripheral theory IN THE COURTROOM, you will hear, "Obhection!" … "Sustained!" If Trump tries to have the case dismissed because the documents were all declassified automatically in a pre-trial motion, there's a good chance the point will be litigated and decided months before jury selection. If the ruling goes against Trump, I'm not sure the declassification defense will be allowed in front of the jury. Why? FACTS! Team Trump has never produced any evidence that the documents were declassified. Especially if the issue is rased in a pre-trial motion, it may be litigated in advance, out of the view of the jury, BASED ON THE FACTS. If the defense wants to allege these were the personal property of Donald J. Trump and not the property of the government, Team Trump has to bring FACTS. Smith can and will prove that the documents recovered in a legal search originated as the product of the agencies that were the source, all of the government agencies. If the defense claims that by some alchemy they ceased to be government secrets, the defense has to prove the process.
Here's the arena Trump will be in for a long time, facing different prosecutors and in different jurisdictions. But the rules are based on facts, testimony, and evidence, NOT the smoke machine of "Truth" that the right has leveraged to the sorry state of propaganda and innuendo.
For the two of you insomniacs who read this far, here's the rub which Maha hinted at. There's a symbiotic relationship between Trump and the MAGA mob. Trump has political power because he's idolized by the mob. Almost all the GOP leadership in Congress trembles at every proclamation. What happens when Trump is convicted of multiple crimes in multiple jurisdictions. I do not know if he will be sent to prison but if a "deal" saves Trump from a formal cell, I think the alternative will silence Trump to the same degree he'd be silenced in prison.
The point is not how much Trump will be inconvenienced and whether or not it is "just." The cultists will see Trump emasculated (figuratively only) and all the wannabes like DeDantis will try to move in which guarantees a civil war within MAGA world. The dynamic is the difference between the "Truth" the rightiies live in (devoid of facts) and the legal universe that can't operate in that vaporworld.
Bilge is a good word for that relentless diet.
The word pap might also fit that dietary requirement.
Wasn't it strength through joy.
Barbie movie map? Really? I'm actually glad that they insist on making themselves the butt of jokes with such absurdities.
As deluded as many of these people are, to the extent they have traditionally voted for republicans who generally do not serve their "kitchen table" interests — what we are told is all important — it appears that there are some who fully believe the lies they are told, while there are others that don't. But they serve the same purpose for both groups — they provide pushback and justification for what they know are either falsehoods, hateful, bigoted views, or really just don't make sense. And the only "happiness" they know is the comfort they find in sharing their hateful views among themselves and that “liberals” are condemning them for them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ituFNPXAaE8
What we're seeing, in real time, is devolution. What shall be done with a nation with the minds (if that is the right word) of newborns?
My current experience with evangelicals (and some conservative catholics) is mostly family and a few of their blogs where I’m allowed to interact. They’re big into reflexively and inappropriately blurting out the latest conservative concern de jour. A cross between the mindless rage of purple minions and the doughey complaceny of Bill Swerski's Superfans. “Da Trumps…. BLAAAHP!”
I think at some level they know that Trickle Down was a bust, corporate Free Trade was a bust, the Spring of Freedom was a bust, Sharia Lawyers Are Coming! was a bust, Compassionate Conservatism was a bust, and that the Chinese athiest mixed economy communism is far from a bust and that the climate in their backyards might be changing after all. And that nobody they know is ever gonna Lock Her Up, Build The Wall, or Drain That Swamp.
I’m thinking that at some deep unconscioius level that they’re sensing that maybe they’re the wierdos, the baddies, the useful suckers and losers which their mothers warned them about.
And so they want to be lied to. Be repeatedly told they’re the true patriots and keepers of Jesus’ cross and that everybody not them is out to get them. It’s classic scapegoating to divert attentions away from their own sins. I also think their plutocratic overlords are up on this and all the psychology behind it and are doing whatever they can to take full advantage, until their house of cards comes crashing down.