By George Fallar 
Patriot doesn’t mean what it used to.
Your flag decal won’t get you into Heaven anymore.
– John Prine, 1971
American singer-songwriter John Prine was always able to boil complex situations into a few carefully chosen words.
So was Inigo…
You keep using that word, I do not think it means what you think it means!
– Inigo Montoya, Once upon a time
Mislabeled Patriotism
patriot : one who loves and supports his or her country
Merriam-Webster
The word patriot has been co-opted by the far right conservative movement, like other similar words. So, the meaning of the word is now muddied despite efforts to revive it. Patriot is so frequently featured on social media user profiles owned by people that support Donald Trump it seems it must be mandatory.
The misuse of the word was starkly evident on the steps of the US Capitol on January 6, 2020. The sometimes brutal images were the fault of people calling themselves patriots.
Look no further than the Patriot Legal Defense Fund for evidence. Continue with the Patriots Defense Fund and other organizations containing the word. Use any search engine to produce countless results that will include dozens of businesses and organizations using the word.
Patriot is now a code word with no connection to patriotism.
A patriot can be angry with the government. Patriotism is love of country, not government. Questioning, not blind acceptance, facets of government is an important part of patriotism.
Don’t Tread On Me
“So many looked like they were going to war.”
Even our flag is in a position similar to “patriot”.
No?
Maybe not always, but what’s your reaction driving by a house with a large American flag flying?
What about a vehicle flying a Gadsden (“Don’t Tread On Me”) flag or sporting a decal of that flag?
Do you assume which 2020 presidential candidate the resident or driver supported?
I know I do, more often than I like.
I can’t be alone.
The takeover of the flag imagery was starkly, even brutally evident during the siege of the US Capitol on January 6, 2020. Look through pictures and videos of that day again if it’s been awhile. Count American flags, count Gadsden flags, count Trump flags.
A Capitol police officer was beaten with a flag pole flying our American flag. The now-convicted felon doing that wasn’t a patriot.
Flying the flag should be celbrated. It should be nauseating to all of us the flag is being used to brand attacks on institutions that also present iconic images of the “America” brand. The Capitol building is one of those icons and what it represents is another.
Marketing The Patriot Myth
It’s no coincidence that a man who gained fame and infamy in Manhattan for self promotion would increase that fame once offered a national television platform. Everyone within 200 miles of New York City knew he was a racist with “bone spurs” that prevented him from being a patriot in the armed forces. None of the decades of familiarity with Trump foibles including a very public racist bent followed him to his fake board room. There, he was nothing but “Mr. Trump” promoted as a self made billionaire.
People outside New York understandably would buy the scripted “Apprentice” image. Producer Mark Burnett avoided Trump character flaws that earned him persistent and garish tabloid headlines. Trump and his kids played the roles Burnett wrote for them. An entertainment show has no responsibility to portray anything other than a show entertaining enough to sell ads. The show did that well.
Overvaluation of fame
Entertainment value of someone guaranteed to produce a quote triggering strong emotions in Americans is obvious. Media outlets, where entertainment value translates into dollars, noticed.
Trump declared his candidacy for the presidency and captivated national media. He offered entertainment value when he rode down a golden escalator to kick off his campaign with an announcement speech that would have landed me in the high school vice-principal’s office.
When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.
Donald Trump – Official announcement of presidential candidacy – June, 2015
Outrageous statements calibrated to anger one side of the fence and encouraging those on the other side of the fence to cheer are Trump hallmarks. It’s nearly impossible to be ON the fence about a comment like that about Mexican people.
That is the ENTIRE reason for using that style of language with that hateful content.
People should understand he believes exactly what he says, including the above and worse. Further, nobody should doubt his willingness to execute plans to bring those beliefs to life.
MAGA hats, catch phrases, and animosity
Ronald Reagan succeeded with “Let’s make America great again!” in 1980
The first appearance of the MAGA hat in Laredo, Texas in July of 2015 was atop the sculpture that is the hair of Donald Trump. It was a white version of the hat which joined red and blue versions rolled out immediately in the Trump Tower souvenir store.
It was a marketing masterpiece, even legendary given the endurance of the hat and the slogan and the MAGA acronym.
The hats sold out quickly and the legend was born.
The MAGA base was born with that speech. It attracted people claiming Trump was “Just telling it like it is.”
To this day, the Trump campaign uses similarly outrageous statements to hone a tough guy image for Trump.
It’s unnecessary to look further than the MAGA hat for evidence of how successful the branding of the Trump mystique has been. The color of the red hat works and it has become a tribal thing millions of people are happy to sport.
The Art of the Patriot Brand
Donald Trump has a knack for branding, and it reaches far beyond hats and other physical totems. He had to distinguish himself from what ended up being 17 other Republican candidates vying for the nomination. He did that… in spades.
At a recent Trump rally outside the Capitol, they floated like so many buoys in the sea of voters. Many said they wore the hats because they supported Mr. Trump, his optimistic message — an echo of Ronald Reagan’s 1980 “Let’s Make America Great Again” — and his tell-it-like-it-is ethos.
Trump’s Campaign Hat Becomes an Ironic Summer Accessory – NY Times Sept. 11, 2015
Once that image was cemented, clear gaps grew wider between people who found him refreshing and attractive and people who found him bigoted and predictable.
Patriot as a word was added to the branding early on. Patriotism means solidarity with positions defined by Trump toward border security, a “Muslim ban”, using National Guard troops to quell demonstrations, masks, Fauci, the “mainstream” press, even something as accurate and effective as mail-in ballots.
Disagree for any reason with any of those positions? You’re the enemy.
Both Sides Do It!
Some of that enmity affects the other side of the fence and their attitudes toward the MAGA side. We all share the blame for continued polarization.
Two significant differences, at least, exist. Either reason by itself lays waste to any “both sides” declaration.
Charismatic leadership is the MAGA secret sauce
The first is people on left side of the fence are not led by a charismatic leader with outsize influence on their opinions and voting decisions. Proof can be had in polling results for the 2024 Republican presidential race. Despite 91 indictments worth of legal problems. Donald Trump continues to outpace every rival and it’s not close. He currently leads his closest rival by almost FORTY SEVEN points and still climbing.
Trump has refused to participate in televised debates. He is using his rally speeches and briefer speeches outside the courtroom where he is dealing with litigation of the punishment he will receive for fraud.
Persecution and Promises
His rally speeches and courthouse mini speeches and rants on “Truth Social” are filled with insults and falsehoods. No, you say?
Trump loudly declares he will be found innocent of fraud. His base happily repeats that. Trump is already liable for the fraud charges in New York. The court is now deciding the extent of the penalty.
Trump’s whines about not being allowed a jury trial. are also lies. His lawyers neglected to ASK for a jury trial. Doh!
The best evidence of the power of the “cult of personality” is the January 6 storming of the Capitol. It’s debatable in some circles whether the former president sent his “patriots” from his rally to the Capitol but there’s no doubt he did nothing to stop it.
He watched it on television and was silent. Trump watched smoke and tear gas rising above the crowds screaming they wanted to LYNCH his vice president and he still refused to act.
The shelf life of lies in MAGA world is infinite
Secondly, thoroughly debunked lies are embraced without question by the MAGA side at an overwhelmingly rapid pace than the other side. Those lies, once digested, become part of the MAGA culture and there’s no evidence they can ever be extinguished.
The “rigged election” lie is actually a web of lies woven over years. Trump used it often dating back to calling the re-election of Barack Obama in 2012 a “sham”. He hasn’t missed casting doubt on any election with a result he found unsavory since. As the crowd of his followers grew, so did the collection of election fraud lies.
Silence Is Not Golden
True patriotism may even mean an attempt to overthrow the government could one day be warranted. That’s our origin story.
Many of the people thumping their chests declaring themselves patriots believe the time is now. Some of them proved this when they attempted it in 2021.
The problem is, they feel a revolution is warranted because they believe the lies they were carefully fed. It’s an uncomfortable fact, but the only fix for our current situation is for people stubbornly hanging onto the MAGA myth to accept they’ve been duped.
At least two current Republican candidates for president embrace and repeat many of the election fraud lies despite Fox News paying a huge fine for doing the same.
Many conservative American pundits and politicians acknowledged the dangers and cause of the attempted coup. They did so within hours and days.
Then the will of their leader and the strength of his purse strings have them silent or even taking an opposite stance. That’s based on lies and is the opposite of patriotism.
We Can Fix The Patriot Thing
The rest of us need to be louder.
We need to recapture our flag and start proudly flying it.
All of us have to call out lies, check our facts, and tell the truth.
We must reject “both sides” and “all politicians are corrupt” arguments.
Let’s acknowledge that people embracing the MAGA schtick may have legitimate beefs hidden behind the Trump aphorisms. We need to find ways through the MAGA haze to find out the reasons for being receptive to the noise.
We’re all Americans. Together, we should be able to shut down the hum from the Trump lie amplifiers and get back to working together. It’s not easy.
Also… VOTE!
Research and Supporting Information
- Capitol riot: Video shows police officer viciously attacked by angry mob – NY Post
- Here’s Donald Trump’s Presidential Announcement Speech – Time magazine
- Trump’s Campaign Hat Becomes an Ironic Summer Accessory – NY Times
- Latest Polls – Five Thirty Eight