The Dark Knight Gives Us a Lens on Electing Trump Again

It took me a couple of days to get a grip on myself after the travesty that was the 2024 presidential election. It was hard to do because I had to console the people I care for as well as pick myself up.

But then I started thinking about, of all things, The Dark Knight, the 2008 blockbuster that pit Christian Bale’s Bruce Wayne/Batman against Heath Ledger’s Joker in an Oscar-winning turn. I realize that a movie that came out in seemingly much better times might not have much to do with what we’re experiencing today, but give me a minute with this.

As you know, the Joker – in this and all Caped Crusader tales – was an insane criminal. It was never explained exactly who he was or where he came from. The only thing the story said about him is that he had no other purpose but to “watch the world burn.”

Early in the film, he was hired by Gotham City’s criminal underworld to get rid of the Batman in order for them to continue their activities, which he had disrupted with the help of his technology, and allies butler Alfred Pennyworth and police lieutenant Jim Gordon. Initially he claimed he wanted money, but that wasn’t his purpose. He just wanted to wreak havoc for the fun of it.

As Alfred later explained to Bruce, the gangsters hired a man they didn’t understand and the result was mass chaos.

The Madness of King Donald

Just how crazy Trump will get remains to be seen, but we would make a mistake to believe that he will not try to disrupt our lives in favor of his “mandate” which lies in the text of his ‘Agenda 47’ and ‘Project 2025.’ He is promising everything from an economy-killing series of tariffs to literal violence against American citizens.

In this case an unhinged madman was hired by 72,829,600 people or just about 51 percent of the electorate for the vague purposes of bettering the economy and combating illegal immigration. This is, of course under the guise of seeking autocracy and ultimately white supremacy, the seething goal of racists who have been waiting to seize complete and total power in America for generations.

What they got essentially is someone who has the potential of ushering in an Orwellian age that few of us can imagine. In my last post, I gave you reason enough not to elect him. Now, despite the warnings, the floodgates are open.

I’m not saying any of this to scare anyone, but these are not normal times. We are up against an enemy that the people who propped him up did not understand and wishes to do awful things because he can. Because in his own warped way, he thinks he is doing something right.

History is replete with despots who felt the same way.

Napoleon felt the same way.

Nicolae Ceausescu felt the same way.

Hugo Chavez felt the same way.

Robert Mugabe felt the same way.

Hitler felt the same way.

The worst part is that each of them rose to power either directly or indirectly after democratic elections. This means what happened in the places they ruled were a result of choices made by people who did not understand what they were voting for.

A Solution (Admittedly Fictitious)

So what happened to the Joker? Ultimately, he failed.

Remember, in the film’s final act the Joker rigged bombs on two boats, one filled with commuters and others filled with prisoners. He told the passengers on each that they had to activate a device that would detonate a bomb on the other boat or he would blow up both. After a contentious few minutes, both the commuters and the prisoners chose not to kill each other. They had faith in their own goodness.

To capture the Joker, the Batman himself had to break the rules. He used a surveillance technology that searched through cellphone signals to find the villain. When he caught him, he told him that Gotham was full of people “ready to believe in good.”

What it will take to finally defeat Trump once and for all is enough people in America who are not only ready to believe in good, but to also (maybe not break all the rules) do what has not been done before to eliminate an enemy.

My fear is that we will have to experience real chaos, worse than before, before we realize what needs to be done to end the madness.

Madison Gray is a New York City-based writer and editor whose work has appeared in multiple publications globally. Reach out to him at madison@starkravingmadison.com.