VOICING THE NATION: A CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF DONALD TRUMP’S HYBRID RHETORIC AND THE PERFORMANCE OF POWER

Abstract

The paper at hand provides a holistic and nuanced analysis of a speech by U.S. President Donald Trump. Through Norman Fairclough's three-dimensional model of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), which includes textual analysis, discursive practice, and social practice, the research reveals the complex means through which language is used as an instrument of political persuasion and ideological support. It also points out the way in which Trump's rhetorical approach skillfully weaves together an assortment of discursive forms such as the official conventions of political discourse, affectively charged populist invocations, security-oriented and militaristic language, technical economic rhetoric, religious terminology, and polarizing culture war accounts. This hybridity of discourse enables Trump to connect to an extensive range of audience segments, from working-class constituencies and religious conservatives to nationalists and political cynics. The analysis also shows how Trump's language creates binary oppositions, e.g., "us" vs. "them," thus reinforcing group identity and mobilizing the base by framing political rivals, migrants, and elites as existentially threatening. The research also explores how multi-platform delivery through conventional broadcast media, partisan analysis, and social media amplifies the reach and power of the speech, which makes its impact in society even greater. This study makes an important contribution to political discourse analysis and calls on future comparative studies across political settings worldwide to examine differences in rhetorical techniques and their socio-political consequences.