Where does Make America Great Again come from?
Donald Trump’s Make America Great Again closely听echoes Ronald Reagan’s 1980 presidential campaign slogan, Let’s Make American Great Again.听Reagan used the phrase as a rallying cry during a period of American economic distress. 听
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The first time the slogan was used in reference to Donald Trump was by his political advisor Roger Stone. Stone, who worked on Reagan鈥檚 campaign, tweeted in September, 2011: 鈥淢ake America Great Again — TRUMP HUCKABEE 2012 #nomormons,鈥� the hashtag knocking Mitt Romney, who became the Republican nominee for that election.
Trump used the slogan himself in December, 2011 when he made a statement about his presidential own bid: 鈥�I must leave all of my options open because, above all else, we must make America great again.”听That month Trump also published a book,听Time to Get Tough:听Making America #1 Again,听arguing why he is the one to lead the US back from its perceived declined.听
On November 7, 2012, the day after Barack Obama won reelection, Trump decided he wanted to play a bigger role in the Republican Party.听Brainstorming slogans, he first considered We Will Make America Great before deciding upon听Make America Great Again, which he was able to trademark just ahead of his 2016 presidential campaign.听
During the campaign, the Trump campaign sold bright red hats emblazoned with Make American Great Again in white letters. At rallies, his supporters chanted the slogan. On Twitter, his supporters took to the hashtag “#MAGA,” which has become so widespread that people will refer to听Make American Great Again in its shorthand听MAGA in speech and writing.听
The MAGA hat and hashtag became,听and remain,听symbols听of support for Trump鈥攁nd very divisive ones. His opponent, Hilary Clinton, and Barack Obama denounced it for implying that the US wasn’t already great, devaluing hard-working Americans and its self-sacrificing soldiers.
“America is already great. America is already strong & I promise you, our strength, our greatness, does not depend on Donald Trump.鈥� 鈥�
鈥� Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton)
Other political critics have noted that Trump’s vision for “great again” harkens back to the 1950s, when the US economy may have been booming but women and minorities were more marginalized. For their part, many Trump supporters hear in “great again” a return to an America brimming with blue-collar manufacturing jobs and being unconcerned about political correctness, among other things.
The slogan only continued to be controversial. In May, 2018, for instance, in the immediate wake of the deadly school shooting in Santa Fe, Texas, a gun- and flag-carrying Trump supporter听walked past the school, telling reporters he was there to 鈥淕et to the school. Make America great again.鈥�
The website www.greatagain.gov redirects to the Trump administration’s www.whitehouse.gov. In early 2017, Trump trademarked the phrase Keep America Great听for his 2020 reelection campaign.
Examples of Make America Great Again
Who uses Make America Great Again?
Outside of its use to support, criticize, or discuss Donald Trump in political speech and writing,听Make America Great Again听has become a kind of verbal formula called a snowclone听(i.e., Make X Great Again or Make American Y Again).
Individuals, brands, and organizations take advantage of the buzz of the phrase, often for allusive humor:听Make America Crip Again (a听Snoop Dogg record), Make Dublin Great Again (an Irish political candidate), Make American Rock Again听(a concert promo), and May American Gay Again (a slogan used by the LGBTQ community targeting Trump’s vice president, Mike Pence, known for homophobic stances). 听
The abbreviation MAGA听has also inspired jokes and spin-offs, such as Morons Are Governing America, a commentary on the Trump administration.
On social media, “#MAGA” is both an icon for support of Trump and lightning rod for his criticism.听
I just received my first paycheck since the tax cut. I took home nearly FIFTY DOLLARS more!!! That鈥檚 a hundred a month! Crumbs to Pelosi, but I鈥檓 pretty damn excited 馃嚭馃嚫
鈥� Trump-loving Barbara (@Barbara75939296)
Change is coming!
鈥� Fredon Moniteau (@FMoniteau)
Note
This is not meant to be a formal definition of Make America Great Again like most terms we define on 亚洲网紅露点, but is rather an informal word summary that hopefully touches upon the key aspects of the meaning and usage of Make America Great Again that will help our users expand their word mastery.