“Commonsense” was Donald Trump’s most used discourse in the recent US presidential campaign.
In fact, commonsense became the buzzword. It appealed to the average American voter more than other political sloganeering. This includes threats to democracy, freedoms, and rights.
Commonsense does not belong to any of the existing political forums.
Its eloquence appeals more to ordinary folks. These are people unfamiliar with or averse to current political orders or philosophies. Trump doubtfully ever studied these philosophies and is least bothered by them.
He does not carry democratic values and unquestionably does not relate himself to socialism or communism. He inclines towards white supremacy or right-wing tenets. And being a narcissist, authoritarianism packs more value for him to Make America Great Again.
For that reason, Commonsense is his narrative. It is a new political tool he aggressively and successfully brandished during the election. He stamped it onto every issue: immigration, crime, inflation, and Washington bureaucracy.
The brilliance of commonsense lies in its absence of deep policy knowledge or ideological commitment. It is just a gut feeling that something’s gone wrong. Fixing it requires no rocket science.
The tenets of Commonsense are easy to relate to. They align well with most people. These individuals are not versed in the social and economic promises. They may not be familiar with the otherwise runout socialist or capitalist political structures.
All the existing political ideologies and related systems have proven almost ineffective. They are also disappointing, corrupted, and even outdated. “Commonsense” emerges as a plain, popular and catchy induction in political campaigning.
Here in Canada, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre’s pet phrase is also Commonsense. He uses it to denounce the Liberal Party government’s lack of commonsense in governing the nation’s affairs.
Commonsense is based on perceiving facts or situations and seeking sensible decisions. It is a prudent approach that is independent of academic evaluations and knowledge.
Trump’s Commonsense is not anti-intellectualism.
Given the decadence of all political ideologies, the Commonsense diction needs to be taken literally and seriously. It merits space in the political arena and a new chapter in political studies.
By Promod Puri
Promod Puri.com 