An American Monarch?

Reminiscent of the UK’s 2003 Stop The War demonstrations, where hundreds of thousands gathered to (unsuccessfully) oppose the Iraq War, the most recent wave of ‘No Kings’ rallies in the US saw demonstrations attended by over eight million Americans. Loudly and proudly criticising the administration of President Trump, there were several incredible photos (available here). Focusing heavily on ICE, democratic freedom, and US republicanism, it was that last feature from which the protests’ name derives. America is a nation historically defined by its anti-monarchism, and the representation of Trump as the US’ ‘king’ is a powerful narrative seeking to dismantle his MAGA identity, however unlikely it is to reshape Washington’s governing agenda. 

The US’ national identity zeitgeist still presents the American Revolutionary War and independence from Britain as a denial of imperial oppression, and while this narrative is a paperweight, it remains fervent. The MAGA right embraces, in a typically populist fashion, a separation between ‘us’ and ‘them’, with the extent of otherness and subsequent ‘inferiority’ (the single-quotes are paramount here) defined by how many of the migrant, liberal, and/or feminist boxes you tick. In this comparison, the MAGA legions and their high priest are elevated as ‘true’ Americans, providing a messianic layer to Trump and his administration in the eyes of his base. This allows him unrivalled freedom in approach, for he is, in the eyes of his loyalists, the people, and can therefore do no (substantial) wrong. Akin to Hobbes’s vision of Leviathan as an amalgamation of the people in one body, Trump is the vessel, and those who do not embrace him are merely heretics. 

A key cog in this machine is the idea of ‘real’ Americans. This is a philosophical abstraction, with little precise meaning, purposed solely to invoke a sense of relatability. One person's interpretation of ‘real’ Americanism is likely to differ from yours, mired in competing contexts, values, and beliefs. There are, however, a few important pillars of American identity to which any self-respecting ‘true’ American has to abide. Anti-monarchism is one of these. Confusingly, this is expressed through the US’ republicanism, yet the Republican Party is the entity on which Trump’s so-called kingship is grounded. Of course, the vagueness of the ‘real’ American idea provides space for Trump’s identity to withstand the accusation that he is the US’ first post-revolution king. Given that a recent NBC News survey found he had an approval rating that would make Vladimir Putin blush, 100% among members of the MAGA movement, it’s clear the ‘No Kings’ narrative isn’t going to disenchant Trump’s base. However, for those outside peering in on this political denomination, it highlights glaring holes in the President’s political identity.

Why would a ‘real’ American decide to go to war with Iran, skyrocketing gas prices for the people he supposedly represents? Especially given the messy rationales trotted out for the war, and that Trump campaigned on specifically not getting America into foreign conflicts. Similarly, if Trump were the vessel of ‘true’ Americans, his blatant tarnishing of the Constitution through ignoring Supreme Court (and federal circuit) decisions on deportation, tariffs, etc., would never have surfaced; such a figure wouldn’t even conceive of threatening the US’ sacred document. Trump’s popularity with independents had hit new lows before the war with Iran, sitting at a meagre 26% in late February, a number that is presumably only lower now, given his overall approval rating recently dropped to an all-time low. The incoherence within the MAGA facade has always been there; it’s just clearer now, bringing two questions to the fore: Does it really matter, and is Trump really a king, or something else?

On the first of those, consequences in politics are a matter of perspective. While Trump’s opinion polling will likely continue to tank, it is unlikely his administration will suffer much structural harm, and a more eminent example of failings in intra-term democratic accountability one will not see. Unless the unlikely event that Trump uses one of several prospective approaches to bend the Constitution backwards to enable a third term run comes to pass, the impacts of the ‘No Kings’ narrative will be minimal within the walls of the White House. However effective it may be at highlighting the flaws in the Trumpian narrative, as we’ve discussed, his base is as loyal as ever, and to be fair, Trump isn’t really a king. 

Trump was still elected, has to go through Congress to pass legislation (by and large), and so on. While he’s attempted to expand presidential power to a new level, almost every president has attempted to broaden their remit one way or another, whether it be circumventing Congressional approval of conflict, the line veto, or, as Trump has often relied, using executive orders as a law-making apparatus. Trump is instead the closest any president has flown to the sun of the imperial presidency, and yet it's doubtful it will scorch his governing wings. Quite simply, a truly effective narrative that MAGA’s dissenters can wield has come too little too late. Just like the UK’s Stop The War demonstrations, sometimes a strong, well-supported argument isn’t enough to change the minds of powerbrokers. While Trump may not boast an actual crown, if the damning state of accountability doesn’t speak to the need for introspection into the health of Western democracy, I’m not sure what will.

Illustration: Will Allen/Europinion