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On March 30, 2017, the American Psychological Association (APA) published an essay by David Livingstone Smith, Ph.D., professor of philosophy, as part of its blog series “Philosophy in the Contemporary World,” which aims to explore the various ways in which philosophy can be used to discuss issues of relevance to our society.

In his essay, Smith explored the question of whether or not President Donald Trump has an ideology. He explained different ways of interpreting what is meant by the word “ideology,” noting that his preference is for the functional concept of ideology, which states that beliefs and practices are ideological if they “have the function of promoting oppression.”

Because Trump’s beliefs “have an oppressive historical pedigree (for example, those expressed in the slogan ‘Make America Great Again’),” Smith argued, the claim that Trump does not have an ideology must be rejected.

Smith concluded the essay with an unexpected twist in his reasoning. “But perhaps it is incorrect to say that Donald Trump – or anybody else, for that matter -- has an ideology,” he wrote. “In light of considerations that I’ve presented here, it might be more accurate to say that ideologies have us, for we are all, to some degree, vessels into which the oppressive forces of history have been poured.”

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