Donald Trump and the Branding of the American Presidency

Book excerpt: This book argues that Donald Trump’s election and Presidency represent the triumph of marketing, branding and segmentation in American politics. An early emphasis on political marketing helped Trump secure the presidency, but his use of marketing sharply limited his presidency. President Trump’s political marketing strategy privileged emotion—particularly anger—over policy, constraining his ability to represent all Americans or engage in bipartisan negotiation in Congress. Rather than pushing forward realistic legislation and rallying for bipartisan support, Trump’s campaign and presidency focused on providing emotional gratification to his target audience, leading those outside this audience to ultimately feel unrepresented and unsettled, further fracturing the already divided electorate. Donald Trump and the Branding of the American Presidency considers the impact of this new age of political marketing through an extensive analysis of the Trump phenomenon and its implications for future elections.