United States
“Let’s Go Brandon!”: This is behind the new battle cry of the Trump movement
Donald Trump and his wife Melania visiting the World Series. During the game, “Let’s Go Brandon” was heard over and over again.
© Brynn Anderson / DPA
The American New Right gathers behind the cryptic battle cry “Let’s Go Brandon!” A song of the same name jumps to the top of the US charts, fans chant it in the stadium and Donald Trump sells matching t-shirts. What does the exclamation stand for?
A year after Joe Biden was elected President of the United States, there is still a deep divide between supporters of the Democrats and the opposition Republicans. Despite the electoral defeat, the conservative party seems to be breaking away from the old economically liberal forces of the Bush administration and is increasingly finding its place in the right-wing populist camp of Trump supporters: inside.
The 45th President of the USA continues to gather a large fan base. He’s toured various states for months, despite defeat, claiming he was the rightful winner last November. For a few weeks now, however, one hears mainly one battle cry at Trump rallies: “Let’s Go Brandon!”.
The exclamation is an involuntary synonym for dislike of incumbent President Joe Biden. The slogan spreads like wildfire at public events and on the Internet. How did it come to this?
Misunderstanding becomes a battle cry
“Let’s Go Brandon!” can be traced back to a curious incident in US motorsport. When the Nascar driver Brandon Brown was interviewed by a reporter in early October, a well-known and rather uncreative battle cry resounded from the stands: “Fuck Joe Biden!”.
The reporter interrogated herself, consciously or unconsciously, and quickly turned the slurs against the president into enthusiastic cheers for the racing driver – “Let’s Go Brandon!”. Within a very short time, the misunderstanding became the new prevailing motto of Trump supporters: inside.
“Let’s Go Brandon”: From Internet Memes to Chart Success
“Let’s Go Brandon!” has undergone an incredible development from the Internet meme to the middle of society in the past few weeks. After “Pepe The Frog” and various other misinformation campaigns, the movement is another indication of how crude and skilful the American New Right is on the Internet. Millions of tweets and posts later, the Brandon wave is now also reaching the analog world.
At an American airline, a pilot greeted his passengers with the slogan that soldiers wear T-shirts with the imprint at award ceremonies and at sporting events in the American South, posters with the imprint can be seen almost as often as the names of the teams and players.
Those who use the battle cry not only present themselves as ardent supporters: in of Donald Trump, but also express hatred against political elites and the Democrats. So does the rapper Bryson Gray. His song “Let’s Go Brandon!” is riddled with conspiracy theories against Joe Biden and his Corona policy and has catapulted to the top of the iTunes charts last week. Brandon pop songs have also established themselves in the following three places – despite the worldwide enthusiasm for the comeback of the British singer Adele.
Brandon wave arrives in Washington
In Washington, too, the battle cry is finding more and more supporters: inside. At the heart of American politics, more and more Republicans have shown themselves to be in solidarity with Donald Trump in this way in recent weeks.
Florida MP Bill Posey recently finished a speech in the House of Representatives in which he raised his fist and said, “Let’s Go Brandon!” shouted, Colorado MP Lauren Boebert staged on Twitter to the song by Bryson Gray and Trump’s former opponent for the Republican presidential candidacy, Ted Cruz, posed proudly in front of a Brandon poster.
Movement could herald Donald Trump’s return
The success of the battle cry speaks symbolically for the currently ailing President Joe Biden. The 78-year-old is struggling with falling population polls. Rising corona infections, the devastating Afghanistan withdrawal and the economic price of high inflation and delivery bottlenecks leave many voters disappointed. According to the latest poll, only 43 percent are satisfied with the president’s work. Only Trump was less popular at this point in office.
However, this seems to be confirmed by the “Let’s Go Brandon!” Movement. Again and again Trump greets fans in his emails with the battle cry and sells T-shirts with matching labels for 45 dollars a piece in his online shop.
Since his election defeat, the rumor has persisted in Washington that Trump could run again in the next elections in 2024. According to a recent poll by Quinnipiac University, two thirds of his party want to send him back into the presidential race. Trump himself has repeatedly harbored public ambitions for a new term in office in the past.
Maintaining the enthusiasm of his supporters inside seems to be an important piece of the puzzle in Trump’s election campaign. The “Let’s Go Brandon!” Movement suits the former president at just the right time. When Donald and Melania Trump attended a baseball game between the Atlanta Braves and the Houston Astros over the weekend, the crowd broke into “Let’s Go Brandon!” Trump looked down at the crowds in his VIP box, visibly satisfied.
Sources:New York Times, Five Thirty Eight, Mirror online, Handelsblatt, Quinnipiac University