The radical isolationism of Donald Trump

Trump promises to "Make America Great Again" by using its military might to cordon the U.S. off from the evils of the world

Donald Trump doesn't quite fit any political party.
(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The Donald Trump phenomenon might finally be fading. After 107 crazy days on top of the Real Clear Politics polling average, Trump has finally been dethroned by Ben Carson. But don't write Trump off just yet. He's still a potential powerhouse in the GOP presidential race.

What is the precise nerve that Trump has tapped in the American psyche that has allowed him to do so well? Many attribute his success to a loud-mouthed, no-holds-barred persona. That's certainly part of it, but that's not all there is. Indeed, the core element of his attraction to conservatives isn't his un-PC pomposity, but his promise of radical isolationism. Trump promises to "Make America Great Again" by using its military might to cordon the U.S. off from the evils of the world.

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Shikha Dalmia

Shikha Dalmia is a visiting fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University studying the rise of populist authoritarianism.  She is a Bloomberg View contributor and a columnist at the Washington Examiner, and she also writes regularly for The New York Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, and numerous other publications. She considers herself to be a progressive libertarian and an agnostic with Buddhist longings and a Sufi soul.