Make America Great Again (slogan)
"Make America Great Again" (MAGA) is a campaign slogan popularized by Donald Trump during his 2016 presidential campaign and subsequently utilized in his 2020 and 2024 runs. The slogan, which encapsulates Trump's assertion that the United States was in decline and needed to be restored to its former glory, is characterized by its association with red baseball caps worn by supporters. Initially, the phrase was coined by Ronald Reagan in 1980 and was subsequently used by other political figures, including Bill Clinton, but Trump trademarked it in 2015, making it synonymous with his campaign.
MAGA resonated strongly with many Republican voters who felt disenfranchised by the policies of President Barack Obama. While it served as a unifying rallying cry for Trump's supporters, critics often interpreted the slogan as emblematic of divisiveness, linking it to racial and social tensions. Even after Trump's electoral defeat in 2020, the slogan remained a touchstone for his base, with some factions adopting variations like "Dark MAGA" to express more extreme views.
As Trump announced his candidacy for the 2024 election, he revealed a slight modification of the slogan to "Make America Great and Glorious Again," while continuing to utilize the original phrase in his campaign. The enduring popularity of MAGA underscores its complex role in American political discourse and the polarized reactions it elicits across the political spectrum.
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Make America Great Again (slogan)
Make America Great Again was a campaign slogan used by Donald Trump in his successful bid for office in the 2016 US presidential election and later used in his 2020 and 2024 presidential campaigns. The slogan, often abbreviated as MAGA, played off Trump’s campaign claims that the United States was in decline, and he was the candidate who could best return the nation to prosperity. While Trump used the slogan as a backdrop for his campaign stops, it may be better known for its use on the red baseball caps that were popular with his supporters. Trump claimed to have thought of the phrase in 2012, and trademarked it for use in 2015. However, the slogan had first been used by Ronald Reagan in 1980, and later by Bill Clinton. Make America Great Again became so connected to Trump that his supporters continued to use it as a rallying cry even after the election, while his opponents saw it as a symbol of racism and Trump's divisive policies.
Background
The term “slogan” comes from the Gaelic sluagh-ghairm, which means a clan’s “battle cry.” The word did not become associated with politics until the early eighteenth century. Political slogans have been an integral part of campaigning in the United States since the nation was formed. Good political slogans can take a candidate’s main idea or focus on an issue and condense it into a brief, memorable phrase that instantly connects with voters. Conversely, a poor slogan can muddle a candidate’s perception among voters and confuse their message.
Ironically, perhaps the most memorable political slogan in US history was used by a president and vice president who are often overlooked by the general public. In 1840, William Henry Harrison used the slogan “Tippecanoe and Tyler Too,” a reference to his military victory over Native American chief Tecumseh in the 1811 Battle of Tippecanoe. Harrison won the election, but died a month into his term; his vice president, John Tyler, succeeded him, but did not seek reelection in 1844.
In 1864, President Abraham Lincoln sought to assure voters that his continued leadership would help the nation through the difficult Civil War. His slogan “Don’t Swap Horses When Crossing Streams,” was meant to reflect that sentiment. Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s 1932 slogan, “Happy Days Are Here Again,” hinted that his election would bring better days during the struggles of the Great Depression. In 1952, Dwight Eisenhower’s slogan, “I Like Ike,” was a short, catchy phrase that became an iconic symbol of American optimism in the 1950s.
Overview
In 2008, Democratic candidate Barack Obama used the campaign slogan “Change We Can Believe In,” hoping to capitalize on the public’s desire to move away from the policies of outgoing President George W. Bush. Obama won the 2008 election and was reelected in 2012. Many Republicans felt that Obama was vulnerable in 2012 and were disappointed when candidate Mitt Romney failed to win the office during that year’s election.
New York businessman and reality TV star Donald Trump had toyed with the idea of running for president before, but after Romney’s defeat, he began to consider a 2016 run. According to Trump, he was mulling over campaign slogans that would tap into Republicans’ unhappiness with the direction that Obama was taking the country. Trump said he felt that the nation and its people were struggling on many levels, dealing with immigration and trade issues, job concerns, and worries over security. He said that he wanted to convey to the American people that he was the right person to fix the problems plaguing the nation. Trump focused on a theme that he could make the United States great, and eventually settled on “Make America Great Again.” He presented it to his lawyers to have it trademarked.
The slogan had actually been used by Ronald Reagan in his successful 1980 presidential bid, but Trump said that he was unaware of that fact at the time. Republican George H.W. Bush also used the term in 1980, and Democrat Bill Clinton used the slogan in his bid for the White House in 1992.
Nevertheless, because past candidates did not have the phrase trademarked, Trump was granted the rights to it in 2015. Several times during the 2016 Republican primary, other Republicans used the term in their campaigns, but Trump’s lawyers sent them legal notices warning them to stop. Trump made the slogan his definitive campaign brand, using it as a backdrop at public rallies and promoting himself by selling hats emblazoned with the phrase. The red baseball hats became a fixture at Trump rallies and a must-have accessory for his supporters.
“Make America Great Again” played well with Trump’s core base of Republican voters who felt that the nation was headed in the wrong direction under President Obama. Although Obama could not run for reelection in 2016, the Democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton, was viewed by Republicans as a fellow liberal who would continue or expand on many of Obama’s policies. On Election Day 2016, Trump upset Clinton for the White House, despite losing the national popular vote. His nationalist, pro-American message and focus on states with large numbers of unhappy voters helped him secure enough electoral votes to capture the presidency.
Even after the election, Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan remained his brand’s calling card. Supporters continued to wear the red Trump MAGA hats and post signs and banners with the phrase in their yards. Trump’s opponents viewed the slogan differently, interpreting it as a divisive phrase that was meant to harken back to a time when racism and inequality were commonplace in the United States. Many cited Trump’s anti-immigration policies and perceived support for white supremacists as evidence of the slogan’s meaning. In some cases, wearing a red MAGA hat was viewed as a symbol of hate and banned in a number of communities and businesses. Other critics focused on the slogan’s message, arguing that the United States has no need for Trump to make it great, because it has always been a great nation.
For his 2020 reelection campaign, Trump modified his slogan to “Keep America Great,” promoting the idea that his leadership was needed for four more years. However, many supporters continued to use MAGA as a slogan and expression of support for Trump. Despite his continued popularity among many voters in the Republican base, Trump lost the election to Democrat Joe Biden, whose narrow wins in key swing states, including Pennsylvania and Georgia, helped him secure enough votes in the Electoral College to defeat Trump.
After Trump's loss, the slogan remained popular among his supporters. For example, many people involved in the January 2021 storming of the US Capitol in Washington, D.C., during the certification of the election results wore clothes or carried signs with the slogan. In the meantime, the slogan also was adapted for new uses. In May 2022, a small number of far-right activists and public figures, including outgoing North Carolina congressman Madison Cawthorn, called on Trump supporters and the alt-right, an umbrella term that typically includes neo-Nazis and other fringe groups, to reoganize themselves into a new movement known as "Dark MAGA." While supporters of Dark MAGA continued to oppose the Democratic Party, much of their rhetoric was directed against Republicans they felt were not sufficiently supportive of Trump. Dark MAGA also explicitly endorsed the use of violence to achieve its political aims, though most of its activism was initially limited to the creation of online memes. Despite widespread reporting on the emergence of the so-called Dark MAGA movement, use of the term largely fizzled within months of the initial announcement.
In November 2022 Trump announced that he would be running for president once again as a Republican candidate in the 2024 US presidential election; during his announcement speech, he told supporters he would "make America great and glorious again." Despite some speculation that this new phrase, "Make America Great and Glorious Again" (MAGAGA), would become Trump's new slogan, he continued to use the original "Make America Great Again" slogan on his website and other campaign materials.
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