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"Make America Great Again" or MAGA is an American political slogan popularized by Donald Trump in his successful 2016 presidential campaign. The slogan became a pop culture phenomenon, seeing widespread use and spawning numerous variants in the arts, entertainment and politics, being used by those who support and oppose the presidency of Donald Trump. Since its popularization in the 2010s, the slogan has been accused by some of being a loaded phrase. Multiple journalists, scholars, and commentators have called the slogan
racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race over another. It may also mean prejudice, d ...
, regarding it as dog-whistle politics and coded language. Some have rejected the racist characterization, saying that the slogan is instead
patriotic Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and sense of attachment to one's country. This attachment can be a combination of many different feelings, language relating to one's own homeland, including ethnic, cultural, political or histor ...
or American nationalist. The slogan was also at the center of two events, the
Jussie Smollett hate crime hoax On January 29, 2019, American actor Jussie Smollett approached the Chicago Police Department and reported a hate crime that he had staged earlier that morning. He planned the hate crime with two Nigerian brothers, Abimbola and Olabinjo Osundair ...
and the
January 2019 Lincoln Memorial confrontation On January 18, 2019, a confrontation between groups of political demonstrators took place near the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. The interaction between Covington Catholic High School student Nicholas Sandmann and Native American Nathan ...
.


Use before Donald Trump

While not necessarily invoked as a formal slogan, the phrase has appeared in politics and literature on numerous occasions.


Alexander Wiley

Republican senator Alexander Wiley employed the phrase in a speech at the third session of the
76th Congress The 76th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1939, ...
ahead of the 1940 presidential election: "America needs a leader who can coordinate labor, capital, and management; who can give the man of enterprise encouragement, who can give them the spirit which will beget vision. That will make America great again."


Barry Goldwater

The slogan was found in some advertising associated with
Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and United States Air Force officer who was a five-term U.S. Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–1987) and the Republican Party nominee for presid ...
's unsuccessful 1964 presidential campaign.


Ronald Reagan

"Let's make America great again" was famously used in Ronald Reagan's 1980 presidential campaign. At the time the United States was suffering from a worsening economy at home marked by
stagflation In economics, stagflation or recession-inflation is a situation in which the inflation rate is high or increasing, the economic growth rate slows, and unemployment remains steadily high. It presents a dilemma for economic policy, since actions ...
. Using the country's economic distress as a springboard for his campaign, Reagan used the slogan to stir a sense of patriotism among the electorate. Within his acceptance speech at the
1980 Republican National Convention The 1980 Republican National Convention convened at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan, from July 14 to July 17, 1980. The Republican National Convention nominated retired Hollywood actor and former Governor Ronald Reagan of California for p ...
, Reagan said, "For those without job opportunities, we'll stimulate new opportunities, particularly in the inner cities where they live. For those who've abandoned hope, we'll restore hope and we'll welcome them into a great national crusade to make America great again."


Bill Clinton

The phrase was also used in speeches by Bill Clinton during his 1992 presidential campaign. Clinton also used the phrase in a radio commercial aired for Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential primary campaign. During the 2016 electoral campaign, Clinton suggested that Trump's version, used as a campaign rallying cry, was a message to white Southerners that Trump was promising to "give you an economy you had 50 years ago, and... move you back up on the social totem pole and other people down."


In fiction

Author
Octavia E. Butler Octavia Estelle Butler (June 22, 1947 – February 24, 2006) was an American science fiction author and a multiple recipient of the Hugo and Nebula awards. In 1995, Butler became the first science-fiction writer to receive a MacArthur Fellowship ...
used "Make America Great Again" as the presidential campaign slogan for a character, Andrew Steele Jarret, in her 1998 dystopian novel, ''
Parable of the Talents The Parable of the Talents (also the Parable of the Minas) is one of the parables of Jesus. It appears in two of the synoptic, canonical gospels of the New Testament: * * Although the basic theme of each of these parables is essentially ...
''. Jarret is described as "a
demagogue A demagogue (from Greek , a popular leader, a leader of a mob, from , people, populace, the commons + leading, leader) or rabble-rouser is a political leader in a democracy who gains popularity by arousing the common people against elites, ...
, a rabble-rouser, and a hypocrite hopulled religion and government together and cemented the link with money from rich businessmen".


Christine O'Donnell

Christine O'Donnell's book about her unsuccessful 2010 bid as the Republican nominee for a US Senate seat in Delaware was published by
St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, in the Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under si ...
on August 16, 2011, as ''Troublemaker: Let's Do What It Takes to Make America Great Again''.


Use by Donald Trump

In December 2011, Trump made a statement in which he said he was unwilling to rule out running as a presidential candidate in the future, explaining "I must leave all of my options open because, above all else, we must make America great again." Also in December 2011, he published a book using as a subtitle the similar phrase "Making America #1 Again"which in a 2015 reissue was changed to "Make America Great Again!" On January 1, 2012, a group of Trump supporters filed paperwork with the Texas Secretary of State's office to create the "Make America Great Again Party", which would have allowed Trump to be that party's nominee if he had decided to become a third-party candidate in the
2012 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *3–4 January: ...
. Trump himself began using the slogan formally on November 7, 2012, the day after Barack Obama won his reelection against Mitt Romney. By his own account, Trump first considered "We Will Make America Great", but did not feel like it had the right "ring" to it. "Make America Great" was his next slogan idea, but upon further reflection, he felt that it was a slight to America because it implied that America was never great. After selecting "Make America Great Again", Trump immediately had an attorney register it. (Trump later said he was unaware of Reagan's use in 1980 until 2015, but noted that "he didn't trademark it.") On November 12 he signed an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office requesting exclusive rights to use the slogan for political purposes. It was registered as a service mark on July 14, 2015, after Trump formally began his
2016 presidential campaign This national electoral calendar for 2016 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2016 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *7 January: Kiri ...
and demonstrated that he was using the slogan for the purpose stated on the application. Trump used the slogan in public as early as August 2013, in an interview with Jonathan Karl. During the 2016 campaign, Trump often used the slogan, especially by wearing hats emblazoned with the phrase in white letters, which soon became popular among his supporters. The slogan was so important to the campaign that at one point it spent more on making the hatssold for $25 each on its websitethan on polling, consultants, or television commercials. Millions were sold, and Trump estimated that counterfeit versions outnumbered the real hat ten to one. "...but it was a slogan, and every time somebody buys one, that's an advertisement." Following Trump's election, the website of his presidential transition was established at greatagain.gov. Trump said in 2017 and 2018 that the slogan of his 2020 reelection campaign would be "Keep America Great" and he sought to trademark it. However, Trump's 2020 campaign continued to use the "Make America Great Again" slogan. Trump's vice president, Mike Pence, used the phrase "make America great again, again" in his
2020 Republican National Convention The 2020 Republican National Convention in which delegates of the United States Republican Party selected the party's nominees for president and vice president in the 2020 United States presidential election, was held from August 24 to 27, 202 ...
speech, garnering ridicule and comparisons to the catchphrase "again-again" from ''Teletubbies''. In late 2021, this phrase became the name of a pro-Trump Super-PAC, which was also mocked. A 2020 executive order, titled "Promoting Beautiful Federal Civic Architecture," was nicknamed "Make Federal Buildings Beautiful Again" by proponents and the press. Less than a week after Trump left office, he spoke to advisors about possibly establishing a third party, which he suggested might be named either the "Patriot Party" or "Make America Great Again Party". In his first few days out of office, he also supported Arizona state party chairwoman Kelli Ward, who likewise called for the creation of a "MAGA Party". In late January 2021, the former president viewed the proposed MAGA Party as leverage to prevent Republican senators from voting to convict him during the Senate impeachment trial, and to field challengers to Republicans who voted for his impeachment in the House. The phrase was used again as the official slogan of Trump's 2024 presidential campaign.


Use on social media

Donald Trump took the campaign slogan to social media (primarily to Twitter), using the hashtags #makeamericagreatagain and its acronym #maga. In response to criticism regarding his frequent and untraditional usage of social media, Trump defended himself by tweeting "My use of social media is not Presidentialit's MODERN DAY PRESIDENTIAL. Make America Great Again!" on July 1, 2017. In the first half of 2017, Trump repeated his slogan on Twitter 33 times. In an article for Bloomberg News, Mark Whitehouse noted "A regression analysis suggests the phrase adds (very roughly) 51,000 to a post's retweet-and-favorite count, which is important given that the average Trump tweet attracts a total of 107,000." Trump attributed his victory (in part) to social media when he said "I won the 2016 election with interviews, speeches, and social media." According to RiteTag, the estimated hourly statistics for #maga on Twitter alone include: 1,304 unique tweets, 5,820,000 hashtag exposure, and 3,424 retweets with 14% of #maga tweets including images, 55% including links, and 51% including mentions. Donald Trump set up his Twitter account in March 2009. His follower-count increased significantly following the announcement (June 16, 2015) of his intention to run for president in the 2016 presidential election, with particularly notable spikes occurring after his securing the
Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa * Republican Party (Liberia) *Republican Party ...
nomination (May 3, 2016) and after winning the presidency.


Accusations of racism

Regarding its use since 2015, it is considered a loaded phrase. Marissa Melton, a
Voice of America Voice of America (VOA or VoA) is the state-owned news network and international radio broadcaster of the United States of America. It is the largest and oldest U.S.-funded international broadcaster. VOA produces digital, TV, and radio content ...
journalist, among others, explained how it is a loaded phrase because it "doesn't just appeal to people who hear it as
racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race over another. It may also mean prejudice, d ...
coded language, but also to those who have felt a loss of status as other groups have become more empowered." As
Sarah Churchwell Sarah Bartlett Churchwell (born May 27, 1970) is a professor of American Literature and Public Understanding of the Humanities at the School of Advanced Study, University of London, UK. Her expertise is in 20th- and 21st-century American literature ...
explains, the slogan now resonates as America First did in the early 1940s, with the idea "that the true version of America is the America that looks like me, the American fantasy I imagine existed before it was diluted with other races and other people." Writing opinion for the '' Los Angeles Times'', Robin Abcarian wrote that " aring a 'Make America Great Again' hat is not necessarily an overt expression of racism. But if you wear one, it's a pretty good indication that you share, admire or appreciate President Trump's racist views about Mexicans, Muslims and border walls." The '' Detroit Free Press'' and the ''Los Angeles Times'' reported how several of their readers rejected this characterization and did not believe the slogan or MAGA hats are evidence of racism, seeing them more in patriotic or American nationalist terms.
Nicholas Goldberg Nicholas Goldberg (born November 6, 1958) is an American journalist, and is currently an associate editor and Op-Ed columnist for the ''Los Angeles Times''. His writing has been published in the New Republic, New York Times, Vanity Fair, the Nation ...
described the slogan as "fabulous", writing: "It was vague enough to appeal to optimists generally, while leaving plenty of room for bitter and resentful voters to conclude that we were finally going back to the days when they ran the world." Polling has shown that about ten percent of black voters identified as Trump supporters, while about thirty percent of Hispanic voters identified as Trump supporters. A 2018 study using
text mining Text mining, also referred to as ''text data mining'', similar to text analytics, is the process of deriving high-quality information from text. It involves "the discovery by computer of new, previously unknown information, by automatically extract ...
and semantic network analytics of Twitter text and hashtags networks found that the "#MakeAmericaGreatAgain" and "#MAGA" hashtags were commonly used by white supremacist and white nationalist users, and had been used as "an organizing discursive space" for far-right extremists globally.


Derivative slogans

"Make America Great Again" has been the subject of many parodies, jokes, instances of praise, references, and criticisms which base themselves off of the four word slogan.


Derivatives used by Trump

"Keep America Great" has been the most popular derivative of "Make America Great Again", with Trump's 2020 presidential campaign adopting it as the official slogan, though often used alongside "Make America Great Again". Upon Trump announcing his candidacy for president in the 2024 election, commentators described his use of the tagline "Make America Great and Glorious Again" ("MAGAGA"). The term has come to be a humorous descriptor for Trump's re-election bid, and many outlets have commented on the humor that "MAGAGA" provides, usually on the word "gag" being part of the acronym.


Anti-Trump derivatives

After Donald Trump popularized the use of the phrase, the phrase and modifications of it were widely used in reference both to his election campaign and to his politics. Trump's primary opponents,
Ted Cruz Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States Senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz served as Solicitor General of Texas fro ...
and Scott Walker, began using "Make America Great Again" in speeches, inciting Trump to send cease-and-desist letters to them. Cruz later sold hats featuring, "Make Trump Debate Again", in response to Trump's boycotting the Iowa January 28, 2016, debate. The phrase has also been parodied in political statements, such as "Make America Mexico Again", a critique of Trump's immigration policies regarding the US–Mexico border. Adult film star
Stormy Daniels Stephanie Gregory Clifford (born March 17, 1979), known professionally as Stormy Daniels, is an American pornographic film actress and director, and former stripper. She has won numerous industry awards, and is a member of the NightMoves, AVN ...
, who allegedly had an affair with President Trump, took part in a "Make America Horny Again" strip club tour. The tour followed Trump's initial 2016 campaign trail and part of the revenue was donated to Planned Parenthood. John Oliver spoofed the slogan on his show '' Last Week Tonight with John Oliver'' in a segment dedicated to Trump, urging viewers to "Make Donald
Drumpf Drumpf (alternately Drumpft) is a German surname that dates back to the 16th century. It is most commonly known as the likely predecessor to the family name of Donald Trump, businessman and 45th president of the United States. Talk show host and c ...
Again", in reference to the original ancestral name of the
Trump family The family of Donald Trump, the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 and owner of The Trump Organization, is a prominent American family active in real estate, entertainment, business, and politics. Trump, his wife Melania, ...
. The segment broke
HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television, premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office busi ...
viewership records, garnering 85 million views. One of the most widespread anti-Trump derivatives of "Make America Great Again" during the Trump presidency and the 2020 election was "Make America Think Again", often combined with 2020 Democratic primary candidate
Andrew Yang Andrew Yang (born January 13, 1975) is an American businessman, attorney, lobbyist, and politician. Yang was a candidate in the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries and the 2021 New York City Democratic mayoral primary. He is the co-ch ...
's preferred version of "Make America Think Harder" ("MATH"). The slogan has been spotted at numerous anti-Trump events from Democratic political rallies to marches to social media, with Live Science noting "Think Again" as one of its top hashtags for 2017.


Climate change

In June 2017,
French President The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (french: Président de la République française), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency is ...
Emmanuel Macron rebuked Trump over withdrawing from the Paris Agreement. The last sentence of the speech delivered by him was "make our planet great again." Members of the Fridays for Future Movement have also frequently used slogans like "Make Earth Greta Again", referring to activist Greta Thunberg. In 2019, Grant Armour and Milene Larsson co-directed a documentary film named '' Make the World Greta Again''.


"Make America White Again"

"Make America White Again" has been semi-frequently used by hate groups which align politically with Trump. Australian political commentator and former
Liberal party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...
leader John Hewson also used the slogan in reference to his belief that recent global movements against traditional politics and politicians are based on racism and prejudice. He comments: "There should be little doubt about US President Donald Trump's views on race, despite his occasional 'denials', assertions of 'fake news', and/or his semantic distinctions. His election campaign theme was effectively a promise to 'Make America Great Again; America First and Only' and—nod, nod, wink, wink—to Make America White Again."


In popular culture

"Make America Great Again" has been frequently parodied in advertising, the media, and other outlets of popular culture, with varying levels of comparison to Trump from none at all to a rebuke of the former president and his ideology. In advertising, the slogan was parodied by Dunk-a-roos as "Make America Dunk Again", the video game '' Wolfenstein: The New Colossus'' as "Make America Nazi-Free Again", the film '' Sharknado 5: Global Swarming'' with "Make America Bait Again", Snoop Dogg with the song " Make America Crip Again", '' Star Trek: Discovery episode'' " What's Past Is Prologue" with Gabriel Lorca vowing in one scene to "make the Empire glorious again".


References to the slogan by others


In politics

Political commentator and author
Peter Beinart Peter Alexander Beinart (; born February 28, 1971) is an American liberal columnist, journalist, and political commentator. A former editor of ''The New Republic'', he has also written for ''Time'', ''The New York Times'', and ''The New York Revie ...
published a 2006 book titled ''The Good Fight: Why Liberalsand Only LiberalsCan Win the War on Terror and Make America Great Again'' drawing on the philosophy of theologian
Reinhold Niebuhr Karl Paul Reinhold Niebuhr (June 21, 1892 – June 1, 1971) was an American Reformed theologian, ethicist, commentator on politics and public affairs, and professor at Union Theological Seminary for more than 30 years. Niebuhr was one of Americ ...
after the Invasion of Iraq and early years of the War on Terror. In 2011, Christine O'Donnell published a book about her Republican Senate campaign in the 2010 Delaware special election titled ''Troublemaker: Let's Do What It Takes To Make America Great Again''. During remarks at the White House on May 4, 2022, President Biden referred to former President Trump’s "Make America Great Again" movement, saying, "This MAGA crowd is really the most extreme political organization that's existed in American history, in recent American history." On September 1, 2022, he dedicated remarks at the White House "on the continued battle for the soul of the nation" to attacks on "Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans", saying that "Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our republic." and that "MAGA Republicans have made their choice. They embrace anger. They thrive on chaos. They live not in the light of truth but in the shadow of lies".


Use by political rivals

New York Governor
Andrew Cuomo Andrew Mark Cuomo ( ; ; born December 6, 1957) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected to the same position that his father, Mario Cuo ...
said America "was never that great" during a September 2018 bill signing. Former US Attorney General Eric Holder questioned the slogan in a March 2019 interview on MSNBC, asking: "Exactly when did you think America was great?" During John McCain's memorial service on September 1, 2018, his daughter Meghan stated: "The America of John McCain has no need to be made great again because America was always great." Trump subsequently tweeted "MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!" later that day.


Other countries

During his campaign for the
2019 Indonesian presidential election General elections were held in Indonesia on 17 April 2019. For the first time in the country's history, the president, the vice president, members of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), and members of local legislative bodies were elected ...
in October 2018, former opposition leader
Prabowo Subianto Prabowo Subianto Djojohadikusumo (born 17 October 1951) is an Indonesian politician, businessman and former army lieutenant general who is the currently-appointed Minister of Defense of the Republic of Indonesia. He is the son of Sumitro Djojo ...
used the phrase "make Indonesia great again", though he denied having copied Trump. During the Swedish European Parliament election in May 2019, the Swedish Christian Democratic Party used the slogan "Make EU
Lagom ''Lagom'' (pronounced , ) is a Swedish word meaning "just the right amount" or "not too much, not too little". The word can be variously translated as "in moderation", "in balance", "perfect-simple", "just enough", "ideal" and "suitable" (in ma ...
Again". The Spanish right party VOX used as slogan ''"Hacer a España grande otra vez"'', or "Make Spain Great Again".


In popular culture

The phrase and its variants are widely used in media.


Artwork

*'' Make Everything Great Again'' was a street art mural by artist Mindaugas Bonanu in Vilnius, Lithuania.


Fashion

*Fashion Designer
Andre Soriano Andre Soriano (born September 17, 1970) is an American fashion designer, specializing in couture and wedding gowns. He is also a reality television star and a supporter of former United States president Donald Trump. Early life Soriano was b ...
used the "Make America Great Again" Official presidential campaign Flag to design a MAGA Gown for celebrities in Hollywood to wear on Red Carpet e.g.
2017 Grammy Awards The 59th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on February 12, 2017. The CBS network broadcast the show live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The ceremony recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, ...
.


Films

*The tagline for '' The Purge: Election Year'' (2016) is "Keep America Great" (a phrase Trump would later use as his 2020 campaign slogan); one of the TV spots for the film featured Americans who explained why they support the Purge, with one stating he does so "to keep my country
merica ''Merica'' is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Cancellariidae, the nutmeg snails. Species Species within the genus ''Merica'' include: * † '' Merica admirabilis'' Lozouet, 2019 * '' Merica aqualica'' (Petit ...
great". The next film in the franchise, ''
The First Purge ''The First Purge'' is a 2018 American dystopian action horror film directed by Gerard McMurray and starring Y'lan Noel, Lex Scott Davis, Joivan Wade, and Steve Harris. Written and co-executive produced by James DeMonaco, it is the first film ...
'', was subsequently advertised with a poster featuring its title stylized on a MAGA hat.


Music

*Singer Joy Villa produced a single "Make America Great Again" a few months after appearing at the 2017 Grammy Awards in a 'MAGA' dress.


Television

*In the ''
South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boysStan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand their ...
'' episode "
Where My Country Gone? "Where My Country Gone?" is the second episode of the nineteenth season of the animated television series ''South Park'', and the 259th episode overall, written and directed by series co-creator Trey Parker. The episode premiered on Comedy Centra ...
" (2015), supporters of
Mr. Garrison Herbert Garrison, formerly known as Janet Garrison, Ethan F Garrison, and the President, is a fictional character and occasional antagonist on the American animated television series ''South Park''. The character is voiced by cocreator Trey Pa ...
, who runs a campaign that is a parody of Trump's, are seen holding signs bearing the slogan.


Notes


References


External links

* * * * * *
Reagan at the 1980 GOP convention

Make America Great Again? An Examination of Trump’s Slogan
{{Portal bar, Conservatism, United States 1980 neologisms 1980 United States presidential election American exceptionalism American political catchphrases Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign Donald Trump 2024 presidential campaign Donald Trump and social media Nostalgia in the United States Conservatism in the United States Trumpism