(NEXSTAR) — For nearly a decade, the term “MAGA” has been associated with former President Donald Trump and his campaign, but he is not the first Republican or politician to run on the slogan “Make America Great Again.”
It is well documented that Ronald Reagan, known as “The great communicator“, used the slogan during his presidential campaign in 1980. The economy was in a tough state at the time, the Americans were just recovering from a Period of stagflationor a mix of high inflation and a delicate labor market.
Reagan acknowledged the economic turmoil when he accepted the Republican nomination for president in 1980. saying“We will restore hope to those who have given up hope and invite them to a great national crusade to make America great again.” He had previously used the phrase in a Labor Day speech, NBC said. Reports.
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Then-presidential candidate Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy beam with joy as they visit a downtown polling station on February 26, 1980, to make a last-minute campaign for the nation’s first presidential primary in New Hampshire. (Getty) -
Close-up of a pin with the text “Reagan, Let’s Make America Great Again” for Ronald Reagan’s 1980 presidential campaign, September 26, 2019. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images) -
Badge for the 1980 presidential election featuring Ronald Reagan and George Bush and the words “Reagan-Bush in ’80, let’s make America great again.” USA, 1980. (Photo by Fotosearch/Getty Images). -
Former California Governor Ronald Reagan delivers a speech during the Republican presidential primary in New York in March 1980. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
The phrase “Let’s make America great again” remained part of Reagan’s campaign. However, it did not seem to be as prominent as it has recently.
Trump had the term protected as a trademark
While Trump claims he coined the phrase in overdue 2012 (more on that in a moment), he first appeared to employ it in connection with a presidential bid in December 2011, when he opted not to moderate a GOP debate. he said He must “keep all options open, because above all else we must make America great again!”
Like CNN ReportsA group of Trump supporters quickly petitioned for an independent party – the Make America Great Again Party – to appear on the ballot in Texas. Trump later said he thought it was “a great name.”
Trump card explained In 2017, he told the Washington Post that he coined the slogan “Make America Great Again” in 2012 after Senator Mitt Romney (Republican of Utah) lost the presidential election to incumbent Barack Obama. Days later Trademark registered for the slogan.
Records from the US Patent and Trademark Office feature several energetic trademarks owned by President Donald J. Trump for “Make America Great Again” for employ on bags, bumper stickers and more.
“I didn’t know it would have such an impact. It was unbelievable,” Trump told the Washington Post. “The hat is probably the biggest symbol, right?”
The first MAGA hat was not red
While red “Make America Great Again” hats are now synonymous with the Trump campaign, the original hat was a completely different color.
When Trump visited the US-Mexico border in July 2015, a month after announce his candidacy for the White Househe presented for the first time what would soon become his “greatest symbol”: a cap with the inscription “Make America Great Again”.
This one, however, was white.
Later he was seen in a red version, which quickly became a hit when his Campaign has opened its official merch store Hours before the first GOP debate of the season. The hats, which initially retailed for $25, initially came in a variety of colors.
The Merch Store now has eight “Make America Great Again” or “MAGA” hats on sale, but only in one of three colors — red, white and black — plus a camouflage version. They retail for $40 each.
““Make America Great Again” was not the first option
Speaking about the origins of the slogan, Trump explained that “Make America Great Again” was not his first idea.
As Trump told the Washington Post, several phrases came to mind after Romney’s loss to Obama. One of them was “We will make America great,” but he quickly dropped it.
The slogan “Make America Great” also came to mind, but was ignored because it seemed to imply that the country was not great.
After deciding on “Make America Great Again,” Trump said he spoke to his lawyers about registering the name as a trademark.
The Clinton connection
Naturally, this statement was met with fierce criticism. Opponents argue that America is already great.
Among the critics was Hillary Clinton, who also fought for the presidency in 2016, said“I don’t think we need to make America great. I think we need to make America bigger.”
Her husband, former President Bill Clinton, referred to the slogan as a racist code that “white Southerners” would understand.
Clinton, however, used the same expression In 1991, when he announced his presidential campaign. One year later encouraged voters “To make America great again economically, educationally and socially.”
MAGA, again
Unlike Reagan, who changed his campaign slogan to “Bring America Back” during the 1984 re-election campaign, Trump’s campaign seems to remain true to the motto “Make America Great Again.”
This is a shift from 2020, when he (and Since then, the brand has lost) “Keep America Great.”
Despite the obvious connection, Trump told the Washington Post that he didn’t know until years after filing the trademark that Reagan had used a similar slogan during his campaign.
