The Make America Great Again movement has surpassed every conceivable expectation since its inception nine short years ago. It devoured the Republican Party and swept into the presidency in 2016, which enabled it to transform the Supreme Court, pass the largest tax reform legislation in history, and enact the most successful foreign policy of any administration this century by fundamentally reimagining U.S. trade policy and reasserting military deterrence. It maintains a massive and enthusiastic base of support — it is, arguably, the nation’s most potent political faction. Poll after poll now shows voters prefer the MAGA platform to the Democratic alternative by overwhelming margins. Its leader and founder, former President Donald Trump, is favored to retake the White House in November.
And yet, the MAGA movement has not achieved anything like its true electoral potential — and it likely never will. That’s because it refuses to grow up. The movement, like its woke counterpart, is animated primarily by its addiction to grievance and attention-seeking behavior, not by an authentic desire to implement its political vision. MAGA isn’t concerned with winning elections — despite the surprising popularity of its policies, it hasn’t notched a signature electoral victory since 2016 — and even less with forging the coalitions necessary to govern. Instead, the movement seems content to simmer in paranoia and resentment.
