The Cult of Trump
“A psychological portrait of the sitting president…going on to examine the techniques of gaslighting and outright lying that Trump has employed from the very beginning…Hassan also counsels that challenging a cult member about the veracity of his or her object of veneration is bound to produce only a defensive reaction; in its place:…a good dose of healthy skepticism about what we read and hear.”
Kirkus Reviews
A masterful, eye-opening examination of Trump and the coercive control tactics he uses to build a fanatical devotion in his supporters written
*As featured in the streaming documentary #UNTRUTH—now with a new foreword by George Conway and a 2024 afterword by the author
Since the 2016 election, Donald Trump’s behavior has become both more disturbing and yet increasingly familiar. He relies on phrases like, “fake news,” “build the wall,” and continues to spread the divisive mentality of us-vs.-them. He lies constantly, has no conscience, never admits when he is wrong, and projects all of his shortcomings on to others. He has become more authoritarian, more outrageous, and yet many of his followers remain blindly devoted. Scott Adams, the creator of Dilbert and a major Trump supporter, calls him one of the most persuasive people living. His need to squash alternate information and his insistence of constant ego stroking are all characteristics of other famous leaders—cult leaders.
In this book, Steven Hassan, mind-control and licensed mental-health expert, draws parallels between our current president and people like Jim Jones, David Koresh, Ron Hubbard, and Sun Myung Moon, arguing that this presidency is in many ways like a destructive cult. He specifically details the ways in which people are influenced through an array of social psychology methods and how they become fiercely loyal and obedient.
Hassan was a former “Moonie” himself, and, according to Thomas G. Gutheil, MD and professor of psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, he presents a “thoughtful and well-researched analysis of some of the most puzzling aspects of the current presidency, including the remarkable passivity of fellow Republicans [and] the gross pandering of many members of the press.”
The Cult of Trump is an accessible in-depth analysis of the president, showing that under the right circumstances, even sane, rational, well-adjusted people can be persuaded to believe the most outrageous ideas.
Praise