While rambling and incoherent, Donald Trump’s speech to his followers on January 6, 2021, made clear that we were witnessing the birth of a new "Lost Cause," a recurrent phenomenon that has plagued modern history. Not only do Lost Causes turn lies into common coin, but they also forge deep and lasting myths.
NEW HAVEN – On January 6, 2021, in Washington, DC, US President Donald Trump, the loser of the 2020 election, famously addressed a gathering of followers who then joined the mob that attacked the US Capitol. While rambling and incoherent, Trump’s speech nonetheless made a few things clear: leftists had conspired to steal the election by fraud, and the mobs summoned to Washington on his behalf would need to “stand strong.” The implication was that violence might be necessary, because “you’ll never take back your country with weakness.”
NEW HAVEN – On January 6, 2021, in Washington, DC, US President Donald Trump, the loser of the 2020 election, famously addressed a gathering of followers who then joined the mob that attacked the US Capitol. While rambling and incoherent, Trump’s speech nonetheless made a few things clear: leftists had conspired to steal the election by fraud, and the mobs summoned to Washington on his behalf would need to “stand strong.” The implication was that violence might be necessary, because “you’ll never take back your country with weakness.”