Barnstorming in the age of private jets
A political term from the 1800s now describes a 2024 campaign strategy.
The story
Karoline Leavitt claims Trump is defying midterm headwinds by barnstorming the country, despite historical trends and challenges like inflation and low voter turnout.
Source: www.foxnews.com
Our reading
Leavitt says Trump is barnstorming the country, which is a term that implies a chaotic, energetic campaign style. It’s the same word used to describe a 19th-century traveling show that would set up in town squares and draw crowds with spectacle and noise. Now it’s being used to describe a modern political tour, which is a bit like calling a corporate CEO’s motivational speech a ‘barnstorm.’
It’s not that the term is wrong—it’s just that it carries a certain rustic, almost quaint connotation that clashes with the high-budget, high-stakes nature of modern politics. Barnstorms were for hayrides and folk music, not for flying around the country in private jets and holding rallies with security details.
The contrast is almost comically out of place, like a medieval knight charging into a battlefield with a smartphone. Trump’s barnstorming is less about grassroots energy and more about reminding voters that he’s still the main event, even if the crowd isn’t always there.
