The Lord of Misrule

#CPAC #AmericaUncancelled pic.twitter.com/mVqBuF2blY

— William Turton (@WilliamTurton) February 26, 2021

The appearance of Donald Trump in effigy as a brazen figure (he sure is brazen!) has been likened to a Golden Calf as a description of his idol status within current conservatism and the irony that a largely Christian group has apparently turned to the worship of Trump as a cult figure. And I'm not arguing that it's not! But the image here might best be referred to in terms of "a troll" . 

The depiction isn't particularly flattering, and the flag-themed shorts and flip-flops are clearly comical. This is the equivalent of a Mardi Gras float, not necessarily an object of veneration. But you can see the idea--"They think we are a cult, but we can laugh about being a cult. It's silly!" The way some people speak of Trump as an "Emperor God", but like, ironically, man.

So it's kind of a joke. Well, it is and it isn't. I've thought a bit about the figure of what Trump means and especially how it relates to gatherings like his rallies and CPAC. He's not intended to be a genuine leader in the "doing things that matter" sense (people like Mitch McConnell do those things). His job is one of mascot. He's a modern conservative brand spokesperson. As such, he can afford to be, not a ruler (he works better as a figure out of power, anyway, for the sake of grievance) but a Lord of Misrule.

And this is the weekend of his feast. CPACchannalia. It's the festival of the Turning Point of tables and the saying of things that aren't so. There will, of course, be funds raised for the Guy and the promise of fireworks.

(I think, however, one should also recall, and why should we not, that Trump's mythos now contains its own Gunpowder Plot). 

I'm just not sure if any of them have read Frazer. Or even have entertained the notion that every party has an end.