Ultraderecha en Estados Unidos y en Europa: legitimación del ultranacionalismo y el populismo

Abstract

In 2016 Donald J. Trump became the 45th president of the United States, from his arrival he made an impact in American politics and around the international system due to his incendiary rhetoric. During his campaign and administration, Trump broke with convention in his communication style. Trump rose to power by championing white conservative Christians, using a highly nationalistic narrative, maintaining a populist ideology and drawing support from least privileged sectors in rural areas, claiming to represent the “silent majority”. After winning the GOP primaries in the runoff to the 2016 election, Trump became the leader and the symbol of the republican party; however, the 45th president was able to mobilize not only the impoverished white vote, but also different sectors of the most affluent classes by implementing favorable fiscal policies benefiting those at the top of the economic pyramid. In terms of communication, Trump developed a chaotic yet successful strategy of creating and sorting continuous scandals, by portraying himself as the savior of the nation and a victim of Washington’s political establishment. In this article, we explore the creation of Trumpian populism as a concept originated by this political leader and his influence in other right-wing world leaders. We use a storytelling methodology to examine how Trump has successfully polarized the United States’ political arena, and undoubtedly cast a shadow on the legitimacy of the American electoral system as a whole. These historical events will have serious repercussions on other democracies around the globe.