Column: Exactly why is Trump talking Armageddon?

While Donald Trump officially accepted the Republican Party’s mantle at the GOP convention in Cleveland this Thursday, nothing changed.

 

Except the frightening levels of Trump decibels and an eighty-minute long description of an America that was seemingly a ‘lawless and terrorised nation’ and how he would be the one to change it. Americans and people world-over are still dissecting his convention monologue.

 

The self-nominated champion of the people said, “We are not going to have our country anymore” without drastic changes in foreign and domestic policies.  Rightly a promise of Armageddon to set things right, Trump fashion.

He went on to describe America in a state of dystopia, of lawlessness and mayhem, encouraged by Democrats; while completely forgetting to mention that before this, the Republicans had a hand at it for several years and was in recession prior to 2008 and the Obama presidency.

 

The four days of the Republican convention had everyone ready for theatre and still hoped that a GOP convention of this nature, would be more sober but was not expecting sombre.

 

Immediately after his statement, tweeted one Matt_Estes, “Again: Based on what evidence should we trust a casino & strip club owner, a serial adulterer and a man historically pro-choice?”

 

Then, without missing a beat, Trump went on with his rabble-rousing ace in the hole – immigrants and how he would send them back home. This brought in chants, as if a cult session was in progress and not a political convention. Trump went on to describe America as being besieged by illegal immigrants, some of them killers and rapists. And the crowd chanted back at him, “Build the wall” and “Send them home”.  

 

Needless to say the convention was fraught with tension and excitement expecting more verbal assaults and it also provided every bit of pompousness for a Trump attendee. Which reminds me of Rajinikanth movies from South India. Super hero of the masses. Rhetorics galore and gaudy. The difference is – one is creative licence and the other a supposedly built-up Blue-Collar Billionaire aka Trump.

 

Mando, a voter from California, says, “I am getting away from the US for a while now. It is a country that has been putting me down lately. I want to come back only when I am ready.”

 

Yet, for all purposes, the Republican Party has now a candidate, that makes everyone sit up when he talks and it’s not comfortably either. Despite the fact that this GOP nominee has brought the party to attention after a long time.  

The one controversial statement that Trump brings right home to the Republicans involves his fracas with his fairly recent rival Senator Ted Cruz, who did not endorse Trump and was therefore booed in the GOP convention by Trump supporters.

 

After all, who would forgive a man who has been alleging, that his (Cruz’s) father had a hand in the assassination of President John Kennedy 1963, and that his father was seen in the company of Lee Harvey Oswald, the killer.  So he instead told everyone to “vote their conscience”.

 

Cruz also defended his non-endorsement of Trump, stating that the Republican Party needs a candidate that does not "scream and yell and hurl insults."

 

It makes me wonder, what if Cruz had endorsed Trump? Would Trump have done a turnaround about how he points out things but the media twists it? Or even apologised to Cruz?

 

However, since that did not happen Donald Trump twittered @realDonaldTrump, “Other than a small group of people who have suffered massive and embarrassing losses, the party is VERY united. Great love in the arena.”

 

Another tweeter, Marita@realDonaldTrump tweeted back, “If you call a convention full of Hatred and Fear Mongering, GREAT LOVE, then you are right.”

 

And the online arguments and insults go on. Trolls be right.

 

Anjou DurgaGiri is Asianet Newsable's editor-at-large, currently living in Kansas City. The views expressed here are her own.