WHEN A CULT GOES MAINSTREAM: Inside the Toxic Psychological Engine of Trump's MAGA Movement

[Nevilledog]

https://www.milwaukeeindependent.com/explainers/cult-goes-mainstream-inside-toxic-psychological-engine-trumps-maga-movement/

No paywall link
https://web.archive.org/web/20251005044427/https://www.milwaukeeindependent.com/explainers/cult-goes-mainstream-inside-toxic-psychological-engine-trumps-maga-movement/

Hardened through years of social upheaval, conspiracy rhetoric, and loyalty tests, the voting bloc, known as the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, has evolved into a subculture marked by deep emotional identification with Trump, rejection of institutional legitimacy, and a worldview shaped less by shared policy preferences than by a shared sense of grievance and defiance.

Journalists, scholars, and political observers have spent years attempting to parse what animates the MAGA base. While no monolithic profile fits all supporters, consistent behavioral and psychological patterns have emerged.

These traits are not drawn from clinical evaluations but rather from longitudinal reporting, public opinion data, and observable behavior in political and civic life.

At the heart of the movement lies a narrative of persecution and betrayal.

For many Trump supporters, their embrace of the convicted felon, despite his observable falsehoods and incendiary rhetoric, is not rooted in traditional conservatism but in a belief that he alone articulates their alienation.

This sentiment is frequently reflected in the language of victimhood: Trump is not merely a candidate, but a martyr under siege by corrupt elites.

*snip*

[yellow dahlia]

1. And RW media takes advantage of them to perpetuate the propaganda feedback loop,

and give alternative facts a place in discourse.

[leftstreet]

2. Well worth the read

Trump is not merely a candidate, but a martyr under siege by corrupt elites.

Which is one reason they're so riled about Trump not releasing the Epstein files.

DURec
Thanks for posting this

[Nevilledog]

4. The pedophile cult morons are damaged

https://www.psypost.org/trump-supporters-report-higher-levels-of-psychopathy-manipulativeness-callousness-and-narcissism/

A new psychological study has found that people who report favorable views of Donald Trump also tend to score higher on measures of callousness, manipulation, and other malevolent traits—and lower on empathy and compassion. The findings, based on two large surveys of U.S. adults, shed light on how personality traits relate to political beliefs, including support for Trump and conservative ideology. The research was recently published in the Journal of Research in Personality.

Malevolent personality traits—sometimes called “dark” traits—include tendencies such as manipulativeness, callousness, narcissism, and a lack of empathy. These traits are often captured by concepts like psychopathy, Machiavellianism, and narcissism, which together reflect a general disposition toward exploiting or disregarding others for personal gain.

People with stronger malevolent traits may be more comfortable with aggression, dominance, or cruelty and less likely to value fairness or kindness. These tendencies are associated with lower levels of affective empathy (concern for others’ suffering) and, in some cases, higher levels of dissonant empathy (enjoyment of others’ pain). In contrast, benevolent traits reflect the opposite—a disposition marked by compassion, humanism, and a belief in treating others with dignity and respect.

The researchers conducted the study to better understand the psychological traits that underlie political ideology, particularly support for Donald Trump and conservative beliefs. Prior work had already linked conservative ideology with right-wing authoritarianism and social dominance, but the researchers hypothesized that malevolent personality traits might also play a role—especially given Trump’s rhetoric and behavior, which often display dominance, callousness, and disregard for social norms.

*snip*

[Martin Eden]

3. Frighteningly True

People immersed in a cult can't be reasoned with.

We have to overwhelm their numbers by getting souls to the polls. When we lose, it's due to the millions who didn't bother to vote.

[scipan]

5. Very good essay. To me, they are mostly nihilists.

They don't believe in anything except trump.