Donald Trump needs to build a movement – and fast!

The 2016 American presidential election was unorthodox in many ways and so will the presidency of Donald Trump. If he is going to succeed he will need to create a new political moment and sustain it. The moment must dispense with the business as usual power structures – they are all aligned against him and seemingly the political will of the country.

Tradition has it once a candidate is elected from one of the major parties the president-elect automatically is designated as leader of that party. This does not appear to be the case when it comes to the Republican Party after this election cycle. Trump may technically lead the GOP, but the party’s establishment is not behaving as such. In fact, the prospect exists that Trump may witness his legislative agenda stymied by the GOP – even under the conditions of controlling both Houses of Congress. This is truly and extraordinary set of circumstances.

We have already seen Senator John McCain and Lindsey Graham (or better known as Dumb and Dumber) go rogue by visiting the Kiev regime – completely out of step with Trump’s desire to better relations with Russia. Dumb and Dumber aren’t the only problem. Even before Trump takes office, a bipartisan consensus – lead by Barack Obama – is being put together to block the new administration’s “perestroika” vis-à-vis the Kremlin.

Needless to say the Democrats are in no mood to aid the new president. There is a real danger some Republicans will collude with Democrats to derail Trump from the get go.

The corporate mainstream media still have not come to terms with the idea of “President Donald Trump.” It is unlikely they ever will. In doing so they would have to come to terms with their lack of professionalism and intense ideological bias. It is no surprise we all of a sudden heard about “fake news.” The mainstream is the source of most “fake news” and we should expect a non-stop campaign aimed to construct an alternative and parallel news universe to undermine Trump and his administration. The Washington Post, New York Times, and CNN are leading the way.

Trump needs a movement to bypass all of the barriers mentioned above. Trump is certainly a novice when it comes to politics and policy. However, he is a master of image making and controlling the message. Then throw in social media; Trump is a formable player and a force to contend with.

The conduit for his new movement should be Facebook and Twitter. Trump should simply ignore the “corporate mainstream propaganda.” Going directly to the people using social media helped get him elected, its will also help him govern. If Facebook and Twitter attempt to disrupt him, then President Trump should nationalize both and declare them as public utilities.

Trump’s new movement would re-invigorate the spirit of democracy the political class and the donor cabal have stolen from citizens. The Trump movement would also be a stark reminder who is in charge. The GOP, the Democrats and the media think they can out-maneuver Trump and write-off his administration before it even starts. Trump and his follower should go around the establishment. That is what Trump is all about and that is what voters cast their ballots for.

Peter Lavelle is presenter of RT’s political debate program CrossTalk. His views may or may not reflect those of his employer.