Trump’s 'imaginary world' is a 'dark, dystopian place' — and getting worse: analysis

23 September 2024

When former President Donald Trump debated Vice President Kamala Harris in Philadelphia on September 10, he hoped to frighten Americans into voting for him. But many of Harris' supporters — from arch-conservative former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyoming) and The Bulwark's Mona Charen (a former Nancy Reagan speechwriter) to self-described "democratic socialists" like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) — have been warning that the real threat the U.S. is facing is the possibility of a second Trump presidency.

In an article published on September 23, the Washington Post's Ashley Parker details Trump's use of fear on the campaign trail.

"In Donald Trump’s imaginary world," Parker explains, "Americans can't venture out to buy a loaf of bread without getting shot, mugged or raped. Immigrants in a small Ohio town eat their neighbors' cats and dogs. World War III and economic collapse are just around the corner. And kids head off to school only to return at day's end having undergone gender reassignment surgery."

Parker continues, "The former president's imaginary world is a dark, dystopian place, described by Trump in his rallies, interviews, social media posts and debate appearances to paint an alarming picture of America under the Biden-Harris Administration."

The Post reporter stresses that Trump often promotes outright lies with his use of fear. For example, Trump falsely accused Harris' running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, of promoting "execution after birth" — which, Parker notes, is "illegal in all states."

Democratic strategist Simon Rosenberg, Parker observes, believes that Trump is even more hinged in 2024 than he was in 2016 or 2020.

In a September 7 post on X, formerly Twitter, Rosenberg wrote, "The percentage of his speeches that are about things that happen in this world, not in his imaginary world, is plummeting. He's spending far more time in a place where he's a hero not a villain, where Hannibal Lecter is a real person, where climate change isn't real, where he is running against Joe Biden, where Russia is an ally not an enemy, where the economy is weak not strong, where crime is exploding not falling, where the flow to the border is higher today than when he was President (it isn’t), where the deficit is rising, not falling, where he hasn't already turned his Presidency over to Vance and Elon, where he is not a rapist, fraudster, traitor and felon."

According to Parker, Post analysis shows how frequently Trump lies.

"In Trump's presidency alone," Parker observes, "an analysis by The Post's Fact Checker found that he made more than 30,000 false or misleading claims — an average of about 21 untruths per day.

Ashley Parker's full Washington Post article is available at this link (subscription required).

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