Thinker's Notebook
We already knew he was a Nationalist
Who is his speech writer? Back in the 90’s in the realm of Hip-Hop journalism, the written word was so magnified across the industry that what a journalist wrote could very well cause him to be assaulted in the street. It wasn’t uncommon for some of your favorite 90’s rappers to be waiting outside of a rap magazine’s office waiting for a specific writer to come out of the building so that he could be checked on the words he wrote.
I am a child of that era.
So, who is Trump’s speech writer? Because, obviously, he thinks that he can just plug in nuanced racist cues into this idiot’s speeches to ignite and empower a certain sector of America. That’s what’s happening, you know. This administration has, since day one, has used subtle cues to ignite white nationalism, giving the cowards that prefer to hide their dirt under white sheets the courage to be bold with their ignorance, to wear it like a Nazi armband, hoping that just the sight of it will intimidate you into subordinance. So, who is this fool’s speech writer? Because if anybody needs to be tuned up, laid upon with hands and feet, and abundantly chin-checked, it’s him.
At a rally in Houston last Monday – yes, the President of the United States is still throwing rallies – President Trump called himself a Nationalist in a deeply red city to a crowd of racists, numbskulls and other believers of the bull. Now, allow me to explain why the term Nationalist is particularly disconcerting. Webster defines a Nationalist as having “a sense of national consciousness; exalting one nation above all others and placing emphasis on promotion of its culture and interests as opposed to those of other nations.” Nationalism is not patriotism. Patriotism is when you love your nation, but you don’t think that your culture or your ideals are superior to anyone else’s. Nationalism means that you put your culture and interests superior to others. That isn’t what America is about, but don’t tell the crowd in Houston that. They ate his rhetoric up, they always do. The use of the word in this context, in front of this crowd, was well-planned and well-executed. There is a subset of America that wants badly to believe that their culture and their interests are superior to all others. That belief is germane to their livelihood. It means everything to them that you and I believe it, too. Trump knows that, and so does his funky, little speech writer and so whenever Trump is addressing that subset of people, which he does quite often, he makes sure to say something that reminds them that he is on their side, just a word or two as a subtle drop directed at his captive audience, much like a wink to signify alignment.
Trust that they are listening, and trust that they hear him. When you hear NBC Morning Show Host Megyn Kelly say that she doesn’t see the issue with blackface, understand that she is emboldened by her president proclaiming that he is a Nationalist. Every “Permit Patty” and “Cornerstone Caroline” that is willing to lie on our boys or call the cops on our men believes that their culture and interests supersedes yours and mine. They are Nationalists, too. The “Proud Boys?” Nationalists, indeed.
Words are used to cast spells. You know that if you’ve ever watched a movie with a wizard or a witch, they cast their spells by saying them aloud. Abracadabra! Open Sesame! Likewise, the writers who are employed by this administration are casting spells of racial division by appealing to the character flaws in our nation. Prejudice. Classism. Fear. Superiority. Paranoia. Nationalism. All of the best white supremacists have used these pillars of inequality to drive the energy of their followers into a frenzy, leading to all kinds of despicable acts against mankind. Hitler did it. Bull Connor did it. And now, Trump does it.
It’s easy for Trump to apologize for the words he speaks at these Fourth Reich rallies. He doesn’t write them. I want to hear an apology from the speech writer because he knows exactly what he’s doing.
.