As I explain in my book, Trump always claimed that he leads a movement. He positioned his followers as the best, most patriotic, smartest Americans (ad populum) and as a powerful movement that couldn't lose--with himself as their leader, the apotheosis of American exceptionalism.

People who feel they have nothing left to lose are dangerous to stability. In social movement rhetoric leaders convince folks that under the status quo they're already dead so that they'll take a risk and take to the streets. Typically movements are comprised of the "have nots."

Some of Trump's supporters are the "have nots"--or, at least have come to see themselves that way through grievance politics and lack of standing in the social hierarchy--and lots of elites are taking advantage of the energy generated by Trump supporters.

Things look pretty bleak right now, which is an opportunity for malicious leaders to convince their followers that they have nothing to lose, they're already dead.

They're already dead civically (they lost the election), economically (they lost a business or a job), socially (they lost white rule), physically (they're sick or quarantining), legally (they're being told they lost the rule of law). All of this makes me worry.

Biden is offering peace. He's offering those who feel like they've lost so much that he'll make changes to help everyone who feels loss. He's a good messenger for that argument, but I don't know if folks have ears to hear. How do you convince people that they're not already dead?

Explainers for how Trump uses ad populum & American exceptionalism: