Donald Trump Populism Essay

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Is Donald Trump a populist? The term “populist” has been repeatedly applied to president Donald Trump. To determine whether President Trump is a populist, we first must look at what exactly populism is. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines populism as a member of a political party that claims to represent the common person (“Populist”). However, the dictionary definition of populism can’t fully define populism. Nearly any perceivable grassroot movement can be seen as populist. Occupy Wall Street is an excellent example of a populist movement. The Occupy movement was us, the 99% versus them, the 1% of Americans who are wealthier.
Struggling with this inquiry, I determined that Donald Trump is not a populist. During his 2016 campaign, he certainly …show more content…

The two argue that President Trump’s populism is rooted in several different points; that “he is an outsider to D.C. politics, a self-made billionaire leading an insurgency movement on behalf of ordinary Americans, disgusted with the corrupt establishment, incompetent politicians, dishonest Wall Street speculators, arrogant intellectuals and politically correct liberals.” I find that it is easy to speak like a populist, however it is much harder to act as one. It is true, Donald Trump is an outsider to D.C. politics. President Trump had never pushed policies through Washington’s political cogs before, though he had been known for his frequent comments on public affairs and business exploits (History.com). Yet, I find that saying that just because someone has not been involved in formal politics, doesn’t mean they are populist. I would not say that Sam Walton is a populist because he has never represented his state in choosing to pass legislation or …show more content…

Donald Trump delivered his speech, outlining his plan for the economy. Propositioning to put more money at the top of wealth doesn’t redistribute economic dominance as populism suggests. In his tax plan, he would give the wealthy (or elites) tax cuts. Anyone with income about $418,000 a year would pay only 35 percent of their income taxes as opposed to the 39.6 percent currently in place (Morrow). His proposed tax cuts for the wealthy and for businesses fall far out of line with the common man view of economy. Middle class citizens under Trump’s proposal are still a question mark. The problem is just that. He has many business proposals and many proposals for those making $100,000+ a year. The average American citizen does not even make half of the salaries mentioned. The highest average salary is $50,000 a year at the age of 45-54 (Josephson). This is a clear example of talking the talk of a populist but not falling into the

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