Victor Davis Hanson
American Greatness
In the weeks before the 2016 Trump Electoral College victory, Trump was polling between 35 and 40 percent.
He would average only about 41 percent approval over his tumultuous four-year tenure.
No one knows what lies ahead over the next four years. But for now, Trump already polls at well over 50 percent approval.
Trump’s inauguration in a few weeks likely will not resemble his 2016 ceremony.
In the 2016-7 transition, Democratic-affiliated interests ran commercials urging electors to become “faithless” and thus illegally reject their states’ popular votes and instead elect the loser, Hillary Clinton.
Massive demonstrations met Trump on Inauguration Day.
In less than four months after assuming the presidency, Special Counsel Robert Mueller was appointed to investigate the hoax of Russian collusion.
That wasted 22-month, $40 million investigation found no collusion but did derail the first two Trump years.
What followed the collusion ruse was a consistent effort to undermine the Trump presidency—two subsequent impeachments, the laptop “disinformation” hoax, the COVID-19 nationwide lockdown, and news suppression of any mention of the Chinese lab origin of the virus or questioning the closing of schools.
In the Trump administration’s last summer of 2020, 120 days of riot, arson, looting, assault, and murder followed, with the denouement of the January 6 turmoil.
In contrast, during the 2024-2025 transition, Trump has all but assumed the presidency. Over 100 foreign leaders have elbowed each other to be invited to Mar-a-Lago or to phone in their congratulations to the newly elected Trump.
Remember that in 2016 the left screamed “Logan Act” if a Trump transition appointee even talked with foreign officials.
So why is newly elected Trump a veritable cultural hero in 2024 in a fashion unimaginable eight years ago when the media had rendered him a near demon?
One, Trump is now seen as a welcome relief.
A departing and unpopular Joe Biden will leave with about a 36 percent approval rating.
The prior Biden years are now seen as abnormal, if not disastrous.
The left’s cultural revolution championed fringe policies never quite seen before: destroying the border, welcoming in 12 million illegal aliens, nihilist critical race and legal theories, institutionalizing a third sex, and mandating woke/DEI quotas and indoctrination sessions.
Yet Biden had inherited from Trump a secure border, an economy rebounding after the COVID quarantines, 1.23 percent inflation, no wars abroad, and cheap energy.
Four years later, the outgoing Biden administration is widely unpopular. Almost every one of its policies polls below 50 percent.
In response, Trump promises not just to restore his first-term success but to expand it.
Two, Trump personally remains transparent, upbeat, and energetic—eager to meet with anyone, anytime, anywhere, to talk about anything.
His energy offers a sharp contrast with the era of the non-compos-mentis Biden. The change is welcomed by an electorate exhausted by past presidential stumbling, wandering, incoherence, mind freezes, and angry, “get-off-my-grass” aged fragility.
Three, Trump is grudgingly admired, now even by some of his enemies who once sought but failed to destroy him.
He endured two impeachments, five civil and criminal court indictments, incessant lawfare, a 95% negative media, attempts to remove him from states’ ballots, and two assassination attempts.
Yet all these unprecedented hostile efforts to end Trump may only have made him stronger—and more empathetic when seen as a target of increasingly fanatical enemies.
Four, Trump has expanded his MAGA base and permanently branded it as an ecumenical movement that welcomes shared class interests rather than fixates on the tired old tribal racial and ethnic chauvinism.
Trump also brought in disaffected Democrats, independents, and minorities in a way the Democrats could not with the evaporating and bitter Never Trump dead-enders.
Trump’s veritable campaign menagerie of RFK, Jr., Tulsi Gabbard, Elon Musk, Joe Rogan, Dana White, and Kid Rock made it impossible for the left to demonize MAGA Republicans as right-wing aristocrats, warmongers, or laissez-faire capitalists.
Fifth, the endorsements of the Biden-Harris legacy media, calcified Hollywood endorsers, blowhard university faculties, and tech barons proved overrated.
It was trumped by more popular and dynamic internet influencers, podcasters, bloggers, and maverick entrepreneurs.
Sixth and finally, Trump himself proved more experienced and reflective than in 2016. His team too was more disciplined and street smart, led by savvy chief of staff Susan Wiles.
2024 saw truly pivotal moments of Trump as everyman—posing for a mug shot after being railroaded by a weaponized lawfare indictment, serving McDonald’s drive-through customers, riding in a garbage truck cab, and raising his fist and yelling “fight, fight, fight”—after having his head near blown off by a would-be assassin.
Add all of these once unimaginables up, and the people trusted more—and liked better—the Trump reboot than grouchy Joe Biden or inane, inauthentic Kamala Harris and their shared extremist agendas.
Thanks Victor! I love it when you compile the long list of insults and transgressions the progressives have dreamed up and used against Trump! Trump has endured all of these attacks with dignity and patriotism while biden stumbles on steps and falls off of his bicycle!!
“A departing and unpopular Joe Biden will leave with about a 36 percent approval rating.” It continues to both baffle and concern me that a solid one-third of our fellow citizens (and likely millions of “pre-polled” illegal aliens) remain faithful to the Biden/Leftist/Marxist actions and results of the last four years. Who are these people? Where do they reside and work? The chaos, plunder, and utter arrogance displayed by the Left is on crystal clear display yet one in three of us says “That’s great!”? The fight they started is not nearly over with the rest of us yet. We are not a docile people.
William,
I strongly believe that portion (36% approval) is a mix of ignorance, greed and graft.
Agree , Mike
I am with you, I honestly don’t get it? How can both 1/3rd support this crap AND, more importantly vast majority of Democrats in Congress and Senate?
Was ihn nicht umbringt, macht ihn strarker.
Ihn bedeutet Trump, ja?
World leaders in the free world and beyond have witnessed the lawfare, phony impeachments, etc., etc. and yet Trump still prevailed. This gives him enormous prestige in their eyes. They respect power and he certainly has it. They will either get behind him, or out of his way, I believe.
$40 million for the Russian collusion investigation. I wonder how much the Jan. 6 committee cost us?
It is 36% approval rate but Republicans rarely answer pollsters. The on time I did this year, one question was “do you support the Republican Party or Trump?” OR! I told her I supported Donald Trump – the head of the Republican Party. And that I wasn’t going to play their games. There was No “or” in that sentence.
I had the answer to your titled question well before reading the first sentence but as usual the professor presented the same conclusion later in the post; 4 years of a disasterous Biden administration.
The only reason VDH failed to mention is the nation waking up to the biased left media. Then again how could we not when were saw Biden’s early stages of dementia advancing each successive month while the leftist media report that Biden was “cogent and better than he ever was”. Eventually the voters believed their own observations over the lying press!
” Who are these people? Where do they reside and work? The chaos, plunder, and utter arrogance displayed by the Left is on crystal clear display yet one in three of us says “That’s great!”? The fight they started is not nearly over with the rest of us yet. We are not a docile people.”
I am reminded of a comment/quote that I have used often since I discovered it.
As I reflected on why any and all of my arguments to the left using history, the founding documents and the Founders quotes, real world economics, Scripture,et al- all failing to move the needle, I came across a quote from Jonathan Swift (Gulliver’s Travels) that put it all in perspective for me (allow me to paraphrase): “You can not reason someone out of a position they were not reasoned into in the first place.”
Similar to it is another quote from Thoreau (again, allow me to paraphrase): “For all the thousands of people who are cutting at the branches and limbs of evil, there is only one who is chopping at the roots.”
And “those people” have no desire to chop the roots.
And they believe activity is progress.
I have found it best not to confuse activity and progress.
A dog chasing its tail can cover miles…and remain in the same . exact spot.