In an era when facts are challenged, and the truth is blurred, The Totality of Allegiance offers a vital exploration of the unwavering loyalty to Donald Trump. This book examines a critical and timely question: How can otherwise good, decent, and respectable people become so faithful to this leader?
Authored by scholars Travis Ruddle, Ph.D., and Brad Agle, Ph.D., the book draws from extensive focus groups conducted nationwide. Through these candid and respectful exchanges, the authors reveal how personal and political identities become deeply intertwined with a commitment to a dominant strongman figure in a time of widespread distrust in institutions and even fellow citizens.
The research uncovers a powerful psychological force: a fervent devotion that blurs the boundary between perception and reality - a phenomenon that can be termed the "totality of allegiance" in which the capacity for critical thinking deteriorates and consistently prioritizes allegiance in opposition to truth itself.
The Totality of Allegiance provides a crucial lens for humanely examining the deeper forces behind Trumpism and its implications for the future of democracy, while offering a path toward connection and understanding without hostility and alienation.