Bruce Springsteen deems Donald Trump a “moron” and “an American tragedy”
Bruce Springsteen’s vocal criticism of Donald Trump has been a pivotal part of his ongoing tour, and he has again criticised the politician in a new interview.
Springsteen began his European tour in Manchester at the Co-op Live on May 14th; this was the first of many shows at which the musician would condemn the Trump administration. ‘The Boss’ continues to spread his monologue at every show despite explicit threats from Trump, who wrote online that the musician “ought to KEEP HIS MOUTH SHUT until he gets back into the Country, that’s just ‘standard fare’. Then we’ll all see how it goes for him!”
In a newly released New York Times interview conducted before the tour began, Springsteen showed serious intent to use his platform to reject the Trump administration. He chose his set-list carefully, stating his desire for an order “that addresses our current situation,” adding, “It’s an American tragedy.”
Springsteen would eventually choose a set list that made room for a three-minute monologue against Trump, swiftly followed by the political anthem ‘My City of Ruins’. The song paints a nation in crisis, as Springsteen sings, “The boarded up windows, the empty streets / While my brother’s down on his knees.”
The ‘Born in the USA’ singer explained how he believes America ended up with Trump in power, stating, “I think that it was the combination of the deindustrialisation of the country and then the incredible increase in wealth disparity that left so many people behind. It was ripe for a demagogue.”
He continued, “And while I can’t believe it was this moron that came along, he fit the bill for some people. But what we’ve been living through in the last 70 days is things that we all said, ‘This can’t happen here.’ ‘This will never happen in America.’ And here we are.”
Throughout his tour, Springsteen has ended his hopeful address on the words of queer American writer James Baldwin, who famously wrote, “In this world, there isn’t as much humanity as one would like, but there’s enough.” Springsteen’s message of hope is one reflected in the new interview. He has hope, “Because we have a long democratic history.”
He expanded, “We don’t have an autocratic history as a nation. It’s fundamentally democratic, and I believe that at some point that’s going to rear its head and things will swing back. Let’s knock on wood.”
Despite Springsteen’s evident belief in political collectivism, the lyrics in his songs usually depict the struggle with isolation in an ever-shifting America. Expanding on this, Springsteen added, “A lot of my music deals with the idea of American isolation, which pours out of the streak of individualism that is a part of the country’s personality. And also out of depression. You feel very isolated and alone. So I have a lot of characters who are fundamentally loners, which is a big part of my personality.”
While Trump issued online threats, the politician has seemingly put the Springsteen feud behind him. He has not mentioned the singer-songwriter on social media since sharing doctored footage on May 21st showing him hitting a golf ball that had been edited to look as if it caused Springsteen to fall on-stage.
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