Since he first came down the Trump Tower escalator in June of 2015 to announce he would be running for president, Donald has come to define both the second half of the 2010s and the 2020s. From the halls of the White House to the loneliest farmer’s market his name was mentioned, his face was on every major media outlet, and when he wasn’t in the spotlight everyone was asking “what is Trump doing now?” Even after losing the presidency four years ago everyone wanted to know how he would react, cope and what his next move was going to be.
The outgunned underdog of 2016 has triumphed once more. As the dust settles, it becomes clear that the faithful decision to run for president almost a decade ago gave birth to one of the most impressive success stories of recent times. He was called a fascist, a racist, a sexist, numerous traps were set up for him time and time again in every debate or media appearance, they tried to dig up dirt on him spanning back to the 80s, entire multi-million dollar media machines were let loose on him, the whole of Washington’s establishment stood behind his opponents, his followers were called deplorable and garbage; following 2020 they proclaimed him a felon in an attempt to bankrupt him, with the final goal of throwing him in jail for the events of January 6, the Republican Party tried distancing itself from him during 2021-22 - all in vain. In one final face-off with destiny, he dodges a bullet.
It is truly incredible that, after all this, after all the name-calling, the insulting, the degradation, the near-decade of time to figure out a way to get rid of him as a political opponent, Kamal’s best attack was: “I truly believe he is a fascist”. Have these people learned nothing? Don’t they know that the more you insult him the more his support grows? They just don’t understand that there isn’t, and never was, a cure against Donald Trump.
Even now, let alone in 2016, the room shakes as he holds his speeches, the crowd listens to his every word. Trump was the entry point of politics for many of us all those years ago. It felt as if he spoke to those who had been forgotten, the worker, the little man, those crushed under political correctness, as right around that time many of us young men were just beginning to be called toxic or even evil. Countless people would lose their jobs, friends, and even loved ones over their support for him. It felt as if there was no longer room for us in the new liberal order. And it was Trump’s message that really resonated, that hit its mark, and it felt like he said to us: “get up, there is a West that needs saving!” It felt like we had one hell of an animal in the fight, right in the centre of modern global power. For any future statesman there is much to be learned from this now Trumpian Era.
And so, with his second and final term secured, he has officially come as far as possible and now owns the finish line of this year’s long race. Despite the titanic odds, the obstacles, the corruption, the lies, the humiliation, the all-out war, Trump and his MAGA Movement have the last laugh. At no point did he give up or even hint he would give up. This is what an absolute winner looks like, a true fighter. He is the one who dictates when they are going to be done with him, not the other way around. As a final note of defiance, of victory, of success, Trump not only achieves an improbable comeback, but also secures the popular vote for Republicans by more than five million for the first time in twenty years, the Senate flips red, and the House is on its way there…an impressive, total triumph at the end of the road.
In retrospect, all of this should come as no surprise to those of us who were along for the ride, as in the end the name Trump is synonymous with success and ambition. Despite the twists and turns, the difficulties, the shortcomings of his policy and his character, there is something magnetic in seeing the now tired and battered man deliver a final crushing blow.
If I give you one message to hold in your hearts today, it’s this: never, ever give up! Never stop fighting for what you believe in and for the people who care about you. Carry yourself with dignity and pride, demand the best from yourself, and be totally unafraid to challenge entrenched interests and failed power structures. Relish the opportunity to be an outsider, embrace that label! Because it’s the outsiders who make a real and lasting difference.
Donald J. Trump