Overview
- Kurt Andersen, speaking on The Daily Beast podcast, said Trump’s political power stems from his lifelong “stupidity” paired with an American appetite for pleasing falsehoods.
- He argued that Trump’s recent approach to Iran shows the president has “no clue” about the region’s history or dynamics.
- Andersen likened Trump’s tactics to P.T. Barnum’s plausible deniability, citing the circus line that if you cannot prove a claim is false, it still counts as entertainment.
- He said Trump is largely irreligious yet draws his most devoted backing from evangelical Christians, which he sees as a sign of a culture willing to “believe any old thing.”
- He linked the moment to trends he traced in Fantasyland, saying six decades of cultural drift and the internet set the stage for this style of hucksterism, with his critique carried by Raw Story and Alternet.