When Trump’s frenzied supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, many right-leaning scholars described it as “Vox Populi.” However, it conjured in the minds of many Americans the ominous phrase “Hannibal Ad Portas.”
That shocking episode triggered a barrage of pessimistic rumination, a cognitive blitzkrieg directed at the hearts of many ordinary citizens over their country’s future, with looming political turmoil, economic downturn, and more social chaos.
In recent years, and particularly with the election of Donald Trump, the “civil war scenario” has been one of the primary obsessions of US authorities and the media. With the aggravation of the bipolar political atmosphere in American society and the widening of socioeconomic gaps, this fear gradually becomes more palpable.
Although the United States had more dire challenges before Trump’s controversial presidency, the 2020 presidential election and dramatic events exposed American society’s political and financial fragility.
Since the Capitol riots, almost two years have elapsed, and the observers have witnessed interminable political scandals involving politicians from every political shade and hue.
However, the recent FBI raid on Trump’s sumptuous mansion in Florida inundated the media and society with fierce disagreements, pushing the United States to the brink of a full-fledged civil war.
By staging furious rallies, Trump supporters are rehearsing the ignominious events of January 2021, reminding Democrats and the US political establishment that they have not yet succumbed.
Meanwhile, on social media, the #Civil_War hashtag went viral on a large scale by Trump’s fanatic supporters after the Mar-a-Lago raid by FBI agents. On the same day, Trump’s ardent loyalists surrounded his house as the hashtag for the American Civil War trended on Twitter.
The Federal Police, on the other hand, reported an unprecedented increase in threats against the agency’s personnel.
Due to the unprecedented surge in threats, authorities in Ohio shot and killed a suspect who attempted to breach security at the FBI headquarters in Cincinnati last Thursday.
In its assessment of recent events, the New York Times reported that in the last six years, anytime law enforcement agents were tasked with scrutinising the former president, Donald Trump’s sympathisers targeted and sought to harass FBI officers.
According to the same report, the reaction of Trump’s admirers to the FBI investigation has gone beyond fury and constant contempt.
To evince their vehement opposition to the FBI’s activities, many of Trump’s staunch supporters, including his allies in the media, have resorted to warmongering rhetoric.
According to a study conducted by a group of academics affiliated with the University of California’s Violence Prevention Research Programme (VPRP) and the California Firearm Violence Research Centre, more than half of Americans expect an imminent civil war to erupt in the United States under the current perilous circumstances.
Many sociologists gave more weight to the study’s conclusions in light of the current state of disarray within the Biden administration, including the President’s deteriorating health, his inability to control skyrocketing inflation, and his failure to act against the upswing in armed violence and social inequality.
In addition to these volatile conditions, it is quite plausible that Trump supporters might incite widespread street violence.
