ABSTRACT
I started writing this book around the same time that Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election. Donald Trump could not handle the truth and as of the fall of 2021 he is still trying to have the results changed with appeals to state legislators, attorneys general, and the Supreme Court. He also appealed to his base, which obliged his followers to storm the capitol building in what will be forever known as the Insurrection of 2021. Now, some months later, Trump is still in the picture—still contesting the results, in fact, recently unearthed documents reveal that members of his reelection campaign knew in November 2020 that his claims of fraud were false. The conclusion explores whether Trump is a cult leader in the true sense of the word. How much of this polarization is due to the decadelong addiction to consuming “news” on social media, where algorithms are designed to point people to controversial and vitriolic posts?
