In the dead of night, when most of America sleeps, Donald Trump’s thumbs are busy. From the gilded confines of Mar-a-Lago, his phone emits a steady stream of missives: accusations, grievances, threats. To his supporters, these are battle cries; to his detractors, they are digital tantrums. But a closer examination of the former president’s social media output over the past month reveals something more insidious: a calculated pattern of destabilising rhetoric designed to erode trust in institutions and stoke division. The human cost is already visible on America’s streets.
This is not merely bombast. It is psychological warfare waged on a national scale. Trump’s language consistently frames opponents as illegitimate, elections as rigged, and the justice system as a weapon of the deep state. He uses words like ‘traitor’, ‘enemy within’, and ‘rigged’ to create a narrative of existential threat. For a country still reeling from January 6th, this is irresponsible at best, dangerous at worst.
Consider the recent posts targeting President Biden and his family. By repeatedly labelling them ‘corrupt’ and ‘unfit’, Trump is not just criticising; he is feeding a narrative that could provoke unstable individuals. The FBI has warned of increased threats against public officials, and polling suggests a growing minority of Americans believe political violence is justified. This is not coincidence. It is the logical endpoint of a rhetoric that treats democracy as a theatrical contest rather than a shared inheritance.
But the real story is on the ground. In towns across America, parents worry about school board meetings turning into shouting matches. Small business owners hesitate to put political signs in their windows for fear of reprisal. Neighbours eye each other with suspicion. This is the cultural shift: a fraying of the social fabric that happens when public discourse becomes a series of grenades. Trump’s posts are not merely tweets; they are tiny seismic shocks that contribute to a larger tremor.
One must also note the moral abdication of the platforms that allow this to continue. Twitter, now under Elon Musk’s chaotic stewardship, has reinstated Trump’s account with few guardrails. Facebook has decided to allow him back. The calculus is profit over principle, engagement over safety. But the algorithms amplify the most extreme content, and Trump’s posts are reliably inflammatory. It is a feedback loop of outrage.
For those who still believe in a shared civic space, the pattern is alarming. Trump’s rhetoric does not merely reflect opinion; it shapes reality. It normalises the unacceptable and desensitises followers to ever more extreme positions. The human cost is a nation more anxious, more divided, and less capable of solving common problems. This is not analysis by a biased observer. It is the observation of a society in distress.
As we watch the former president’s daily missives, we must ask: what is the endgame? To win an election? To settle scores? Or to so discredit the system that only a strongman can save it? History warns us that such language precedes upheaval. America is not there yet, but the path is clear. The question is whether we will recognise the signs before it is too late.
