Trumpism as Discourse: Gaslighting, Co-Opting, and Boomeranging

ABSTRACT: While "Trumpism" usually means the movement Donald Trump has come to lead to great political effect, it also is a term that best describes a metapragmatic discourse Trump and his acolytes have come to use to normalize their extremism. Trumpism as a discourse relies on three primary verbal maneuvers: gaslighting, co-opting, and boomeranging. Gaslighting, the most commonly referred to maneuver, is deflecting criticism by saying that the problem is something other than what the critic alleged. Co-opting is adopting the language of your critics so that you are the one with the just cause and they are the ones deserving of condemnation. Boomeranging is sending criticism directed at you right back at your critics. This article examines, by way of examples, how the effectiveness of gaslighting is enhanced when combined with co-opting and boomeranging to normalize extremism to the point that now it is furthering authoritarian rule under Trump.