From “Nipple” to “Nambia” and Everything In-Between: Donald Trump’s Mental Maps and the Unraveling of the Liberal World (Dis)Order

Donald Trump ran for the American presidency attacking his opponents and allies and promising to upend politics in Washington and around the world. Trump advocated for an “America First” foreign policy that denounced America’s postwar project of promoting the liberal international order. In place of international institutions and multilateral cooperation, Trump emphasized a populist-nationalist strategy favoring unilateral action. Rather than seeking to promote a “global community,” Trump engaged in international relations as a zero-sum game where nations compete for advantage. Underscoring this behavior and the “America First” foreign policy were Trump’s mental maps of a weak and insecure America that was exploited by international and domestic elites. Trump also helped shaped the mental maps of many Americans by creating a sense of crisis about the nation’s place in the world. Emphasizing a host of security threats ranging from economic to existential insecurity, which justified a radical transformation of policies to “Make America Great Again.”