Donald Trump is a builder and he is also a brander and a re-brander, but the question now being asked of him is a consequential one.
It refers to the speed and extent of the changes now occurring in our rapidly changing American culture and our deeply divided society: "Is he capable of returning the United States to the country's past glory of the immediate post WWII best of times … or have Americans traveled too far down a very different path where many regard those days as an anomaly or just a sentimental myth?
Worse yet, is the whole exercise just a colossal waste of time because that America has disappeared, never to be relived except in the fond memories of an older generation whose stake in the future is diminishing as fast as they approach the end of their lives?
Can the country actually make a sharp U-turn now? Can we head backwards, retrieving the good things about the "American way of life" and avoiding the roadblocks and obstacles that kept us from making progress since the 1950s along the way? Have we the moral clarity and wisdom to see what went wrong in the last 75-plus years and then use that rear-view mirror knowledge to plot a course for the future that both the left and the right can agree on and pursue with equal fervor?
If you belong to my immediate post-war generation and have benefited from those years and are not too jaded by just as many years of self-destructive politics, you may be a true believer.
If you are much younger or are my age and did not succeed because of circumstances beyond your control, like racial or ethnic prejudice, you are probably opposed to taking that journey.
Your reasoning may be that it's impossible to put the genie of technology and past transgressions back into the bottle and equally impossible to rehabilitate and repair a country that has made so many forced and unforced errors.
If that's you, you are ignoring a few essential truths about America and Americans. One is that indomitable American "can do" spirit that has saved the country from sliding into chaos or from developing a severe case of mass depression many times in the past.
Another is the majority's belief that we still possess all the fundamentals necessary to succeed while not betraying or selling out our founding principles.
If the majority of us actually do believe that we can turn back time by reinventing America, it will require the buy-in of not only those seniors among us, but more importantly, it will require those who worship technology and eschew history to experience an epiphany and be able to see the new opportunities and possibilities by going American retro.
Translated into a selling message for the rebrander-in-chief, America's minorities and youth are the principal target group for an American redux. They must be made to see the distinct and immediate advantages in re-shaping our American culture and economy in the coming three and a half years and they must support changes that may seem to them to be retro-regressive.
The selling job needs to start now.
Trump, the builder, understands construction methods. He also understands what it takes to obtain the support of money men/investors before even one spadeful of dirt is turned over.
I believe he is pursuing a typical developer's strategy.
First, you prepare a prospectus, an idea whose time has come (in this case an idea that has come back).
Then, you secure the rights to the property in question (in his case the [residency).
Next, you find like-minded, forward-looking partners (in his case, his voter base).
Finally, with the appropriate backing. you begin building, and with every new wing or floor or mile marker reached you promote, promote, promote. If cost overruns happen or the media opposes your project. you remind your partners that this is normal and not to abandon ship.
You stress how important the final product (in this case, the new revised, reenergized America) is to the greater community.
And when you are criticized for being too greedy or too egotistical, you stress the fact that you are raising all nearby property values (in this case, America's value and image).
Trump knows that nothing worth doing comes easy, nor does it come without its share of problems or with guarantees.
"Remaking America" was the title of my 2021 book about the first Trump presidency and since then, I have observed how this man has navigated the hazardous waters of several political oceans and have come to the conclusion that he is neither as complex as some people think nor is he as simple. He is, however, a man with a vision for America that is based on an abiding belief in the American spirit, American industriousness and Americans' ability to recognize a good deal when they see one.
If he is to sell his vision and move to the next level of rebuilding, he must convince voters (before the mid-term elections) that his vision is not retrograde but pro-grade, that it is rooted in retrieving the best of America from the past and repurposing it for the future.
If he doesn't convince them of the potential benefits, he won't make the sale. Should he fail, he will take the last great opportunity to combine the heart and soul and hopes and dreams of America with him as he ends his presidency.
It is critical that Mr. Trump stops getting sidetracked and pulled in too many directions. He must focus his energy on being the salesman for his vision and show the rest of us just how much be believes in Making America Great Again. Fortunately for him, he has a great product. All he needs to do now is sell it with a solid selling proposition.
The first 250 years of America's existence have been a sprint seen in historical terms, but if our values-based constitutional republic is to survive intact and be relevant for all generations for all times, we must start believing and acting as if we are in a marathon race. It's also important to remember that with every mile behind us we come a bit closer to the finish line and that the journey is the real prize because we're making it together.
Stephen Helgesen is a retired career U.S. diplomat specializing in international trade who lived and worked in 30 countries for 25 years during the Reagan, G.H.W. Bush, Clinton, and G.W. Bush Administrations. He is the author of fourteen books, seven on American politics, and has written over 1,500 articles on politics, economics and social trends. He now lives in Denmark and is a frequent political commentator on Danish media. He can be reached at: stephenhelgesen@gmail.com
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