Donald Trump is like a cult leader, says religious studies scholar

'I use the word 'cult' in its pejorative sense, meaning a deeply insular social group bound together by extreme devotion to a charismatic leader,' says Reza Aslan

The public intellectual argued the cultish nature of the Trump presidency could have dangerous consequences if the US president’s position and power was to degenerate yet further (SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)

Donald Trump is akin to a cult leader and his supporters are reminiscent of disciples of a sect, according to a religious studies scholar.

Reza Aslan, an Iranian-American author, said he was using the word cult in the “pejorative sense” and argued the US president's supporters were united by a fanatical devotion to their leader.

Aslan, who is a creative writing professor at the University of California, Riverside, said the intense sentiments expressed by President Trump’s support base shared more parallels with religion than politics.

“Trump has harnessed the kind of emotional intensity from his base that is more typical of a religious revival meeting than a political rally, complete with ritualized communal chants ('Lock her up!'),” the academic said in an Op-Ed for the LA Times.

He added: “I use the word 'cult' in its pejorative sense, meaning a deeply insular social group bound together by extreme devotion to a charismatic leader. Such groups tend to exhibit a few common characteristics. They are usually formed around an individual whom they’ve elevated to prophetic and near divine status.”

The academic, who is the author of several books such as Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth, cited a number of examples to demonstrate the cultish zeal of President Trump’s supporters. He claimed President Trump almost seemed to recognise the phenomenon himself when he bragged he could “stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody” and not lose voters back in January 2016.

Aslan argued Mr Trump’s barbed and frequent attacks on the mainstream media, which he notoriously disparages as purveyors of “fake news”, were yet another example of his cult-like tendencies.

“The authority that a cult leader exercises comes from his self-ascribed role as the one true information source for his followers. Competing ideas and facts are not just wrong; they are demonic,” writes the academic.

Aslan also referenced a number of President Trump’s Christian supporters, recalling the time during the campaign that Franklin Graham, Mr Trump’s most enthusiastic evangelical Christian supporter, launched into a favourable comparison between him and Abraham, Moses, and David.

He also drew attention to the time Frank Amedia, an Ohio pastor who briefly had ties to the Trump campaign, explicitly cast the president as a prophet receiving divine revelations. He said: “I believe he receives downloads that now he’s beginning to understand come from God”.

Other examples cited in the article included TV preacher Pat Robertson saying those who oppose Mr Trump are “revolting against what God’s plan for America is” and Paula White, a Florida pastor and Trump spiritual advisor, recently telling her congregation opposing President Trump is analogous to “fighting against the hand of God.”

The public intellectual went on to argue the Trump presidency could have dangerous consequences if the US president’s position and power was to degenerate yet further.

Aslan said: “If Trump’s presidency deteriorates further, expect the religious fervour of many of his followers to reach a fever pitch. That poses a risk for the country. Because the only thing more dangerous than a cult leader is a cult leader facing martyrdom.”

This echoes the stern warning Aslan cited issued by Trump confidant Roger Stone who in August said any attempt to remove the president from office would result in “a spasm of violence in this country, an insurrection like you’ve never seen.”

Aslan argued President Trump was adept at getting his supporters to indiscriminately believe everything he said. He cited a recent Huff Post/YouGov poll which found a majority of American citizens who are Republican believe the slew of sexual harassment and assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein are credible but few believe similar allegations against President Trump.

In the 2016 presidential race, 11 women came forward to accuse Mr Trump of sexual harassment after the now infamous Access Hollywood tape from 2005 was leaked in the news. In the tape, President Trump could be heard bragging about groping and making unwanted advances on women and saying he was such a “star” that he could grab women “by the p***y”.

Mr Trump denied the allegations last year and did the same again last month, branding them “fake” and “made-up stuff.” Weinstein has unequivocally denied all allegations.

Alsan's documentary series Believer debuted on CNN in March. Despite the fact a second season had already been announced, CNN dropped him in June after he called President Trump a “piece of sh**” and “an embarrassment to humankind” on Twitter.

His comments were triggered by President Trump insulting London mayor Sadiq Khan and promoting his travel ban in the immediate wake of the terror attack in London Bridge.

"I lost my cool and responded to him in a derogatory fashion. That's not like me," Aslan said in a statement at the time. "I should have used better language to express my shock and frustration at the president's lack of decorum and sympathy for the victims of London. I apologise for my choice of words."

But he added: "I need to honour my voice. I am not a journalist. I am a social commentator and scholar. And so I agree with CNN that it is best that we part ways.”