Trump's populism is about creating division, not unity
By Ishaan Tharoor February 6 at 1:00 AM
President Trump begins his third week in office with the worst approval ratings of any new American president since polls began tracking such results. His close advisers are circling the wagons, snarling at an "opposition media" they claim has unfairly covered the new administration — even while privately admitting the president's itchy Twitter finger is making their job harder.
Yet a theme is emerging from the tumult of the White House: For a president who promised "unity," division remains Trump's signature tactic. And what troubles critics is that Trump's behavior seems utterly familiar in authoritarian contexts elsewhere in the world.
Case in point: Trump's reaction to the widespread protests against his immigration ban, as well as his fury at the federal judge who shot it down in court. Rather than recognizing these voices of dissent for what they are — normal features of a healthy democracy — Trump sought to attack the very legitimacy of his opponents, deeming protesters "thugs" and "paid" activists while questioning the judge's authority to disagree with him.
This has been the modus operandi of the Trump administration. When faced with the reality of having lost the popular vote by a massive margin, it propagated evidence-free conspiracy theories that millions of "illegals" voted for Hillary Clinton. When posed critical questions about the travel ban this week, White House press secretary Sean Spicer chastised the Washington press for being disconnected from real Americans outside the Beltway — as if disquiet over the executive order is restricted to a few elites in coastal cities.
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https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/02/06/trumps-populism-is-about-creating-division-not-unity/?utm_term=.689595e86c61