“Make America Great Again” has been endlessly mocked, imitated, and parodied. That is proof of its success; it is the perfect Reactionary slogan. Why?
Let’s break it down word by word:
- “Make”: It’s up to us; it’s a question of will. That’s an approach that would appeal to the far right.
- “America”: We’re talking about the collective, not individuals, much as the “Chinese dream” differs from the “American dream.” Reactionaries are not libertarians; they want a strong state that produces benefits for the right kind of people and punishes the rest.
- “Great”: Reactionaries probably differ somewhat on what makes America “great,” but the word is vague enough to encompass anything you want. It can be the English language, baseball, fundamentalist religion, white people, or whatever. In Trump’s case, we know what it means–military and economic power.
- “Again”: When was America last great? Reactionaries disagree. Many would say it was during the 1950’s; some would go back to Calvin Coolidge; some might say the Taft administration; the most extreme would even go as far as Buchanan. The slogan doesn’t make you choose. You can read anything you want into it.
And so, MAGA incorporates all of the vague sense of longing for a mythical past golden age that is inherent in Reactionary thought without forcing anyone to take a position on when and what it was. It unites the entire tribe in its desire to sweep away the corrupt status quo.