ABSTRACT
Among the various promises Trump made to voters during the election, the promise to be their "voice" in some ways stands out. The attack on norms can be understood as an attack on specific expectations of normal conduct. Thus, Trump called for the jailing of his opponent, used racial and ethnic slurs, and celebrated treating women as sex objects to the point of approving forms of sexual assault. Dominance in childhood of experiences of illegitimate authority leads to internalization of a world marked by the special kind of danger associated with the absence of legitimate authority. But, it is not only the leader who must be strong, children must also be made to "man up" in the face of challenges at home or in school. This is because it is only through identification with the aggressor that we can become the heroes rather than the victims of our dark internal dramas.
