This is a documentary I made for BBC Radio 4 about Donald Trump’s first 100 days in office. I had made a series of radio documentaries for BBC charting his rise and the campaign and for this piece I went back and re-interviewed people I had met in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia. It is a rough draft of the history of those days. Listen to the voices now as we continue to live through the Trump era. What has changed since Trump made his notorious Ameri-carnage inauguration speech in January 2017?
“At the bedrock of our politics will be a total allegiance to the United States of America and through our loyalty to our country we will rediscover our loyalty to each other. When you open your heart to patriotism there is no room for prejudice.”
The Teutonic cadence and repetition was chilling to the anti-Trump folks in the crowd. The chill deepened as he emphasised the word “will” eight times in the final minute of his speech.
“You will never be ignored again. Your voice, your hopes and your dreams will define our American destiny. And your courage and goodness and love will forever guide us along the way.
“Together we will make America strong again. We will make America wealthy again.
“We will make America proud again. We will make America safe again. And, yes, together, we will make America great again.”
This triumph of the word “will” has its echoes in history:
A reminder I will be in Georgia and North Carolina from now until the votes are counted to write the First Rough Draft of the History of this election. The trip is made possible by the generosity of my readers please donate or take out a paid subscription and spread the word.
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