Donald Trump formally became the leader of the Republican Party in 2016 — but this should not be considered a hostile takeover. If the courtship was reluctant at first, Trump and the Republicans both realized in due course that they needed each other, and indeed fulfilled each other.
Trump's relationship to his followers is that of a god-king - fascist cult leader, based upon collective narcissism, fantasies of violence, cruelty and an entire set of shared delusions. When Trump began his presidential campaign In 2015, he attracted large crowds. Then he gave them a collective identity by embracing "Make America Great Again" as his slogan. The MAGA movement was born.
