What on earth could possibly link Donald Trump and Domino’s Pizza? A bizarre question that will surely open your eyes, dear readers, to a new and original understanding of the current political situation – one that is, needless to say, highly unstable and anxiety-inducing.

Let us begin by reminding that politics and communication are not the same. Indeed, the former transcends the latter. There is often a discrepancy between communication and the implementation of a policy without this being regarded as hypocritical or even corrupt. The necessities are such that the voice must be controlled, for we must bear in mind that the same message is heard by both our ears but listened to by our brain.

Having clarified the difference and hierarchy, we can move on to the method.

Our talkative president is indeed increasingly being labelled with medical terms. I quote from a statement by Jeffrey Sachs on April, the 5th 2026:

“American professor Jeffrey Sachs stated that psychiatrists have diagnosed Trump with a severe mental disorder, characterising him as impulsive, paranoid, and lacking rational thinking, traits that, according to them, could push the United States towards a disastrous war.”

I propose proceeding by process of elimination, hence my brief but essential reminder to avoid falling into the trap of rationality within irrationality. Let me explain:  In order to diagnose a mental illness, the psychiatrist will proceed by somatic elimination before drawing a psychological conclusion. Indeed, a deaf-mute, unable to express concepts and emotions with nuance, suffers on average more frequently from depression than a blind person, who, through verbal expression, can access emotional and philosophical subtleties with their whole being. The psychological impact results from the physiological difference.

For my hypothesis, I use an example, an analogy, which, however bizarre it may be, offers an understanding of the current situation and restores a degree of rationality before concluding with a psychiatric verdict.

Let me recap the facts of my analogy. In 2009, Domino’s Pizza faced an unprecedented crisis echoed by a phrase that went viral online: “Pizzas are cardboard”. In a moment of utter revulsion, customers and others who saw the video watched in disgust as a chef shoved food up his nose… The CEO had no choice but to take a drastic and radical decision, summed up in three phrases: transparency, product reinvention and the brand’s ‘digital’ repositioning. Success would follow the debacle. As for emotion, customers would be served a daily dose. They would move from anger—a reflection of the company’s tarnished image—to recognition, a ‘born again’ situation, an emotional-voyeuristic resurrection, which this clientele would eventually celebrate live. This taking of control of the situation through this image crisis management reflected raw, heightened emotions, which, when managed effectively, became a powerful driver of transformation and success for Domino’s Pizza. The comeback was all the more spectacular and powerful because the crisis and the backlash had been so scathing. The CEO’s nerves were certainly made of steel.

Let us now turn our attention to the political situation in the United States.

First of all, the man himself. It will have escaped no one’s notice that Donald Trump is a master of communication. Films, adverts, speeches… the number of staged moments is countless: he and the camera are one and the same, like the emulsion in modern cuisine… it is a language, just as the ruler is for the architect, the compass for the sailor, and PowerPoint for the consultant… I hope you will forgive me for this causticity bubbling within me. So let us continue.

Now for the facts. Donald Trump is burning the candle at both ends through his second and final term. He therefore has nothing to lose, save perhaps a second ear, and why not, everything to gain for the post-presidency. But in this instance, and this is my hypothesis, it is not just about him. Beyond the very real struggle between the various lobbies, and his post-presidency plans beyond 29 January 2029, there is a political succession being shaped by two ambitious and potentially presidential politicians: Vice-President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The former takes a nuanced view on the war in Iran, whilst the latter is clearly in favour of a strong-arm approach. The next ticket for November 2028 therefore offers several possibilities for the Republicans.

Let’s now turn to the communication strategy. Here we are at last! Let’s return to our pizza story, but this time in the conditional tense. Donald Trump’s role could be twofold: the pizza chef who shoves food up his nose until it makes you feel sick, and the CEO who could drive up the Republican share price via the Vance/Rubio ticket (or perhaps one of the two), whilst raking in juicy profits. Yes, opportunity makes the thief; such is the nature of man and the animal kingdom. Having hit rock bottom in terms of ignominy, vulgarity and threats of all kinds—and all this served up daily, minute by minute!—the current president might choose a turning point, a moral turnaround immersing citizens in a ‘born-again’ dough, and I call upon my readers as witnesses, quoting myself word for word (I’m plagiarising myself…): ‘an emotional-voyeuristic resurrection, which the clientele will eventually celebrate live’. Obviously, communication is subordinate to geopolitical necessities, so there is no contradiction here. But the emotional game allows those who wield it with ease to create a dual flow and retain the political initiative.

Admittedly a hypothesis, but one whose elements are individually rational and recognised by all. It is therefore their combination that offers this potential, thus answering that absurd question about the association between Domino’s Pizza and Donald Trump. Am I being too naive? Or is it a strategy that is too complex and too risky? It is well within Donald Trump’s reach, both politically and in terms of communication. I would remind you, dear readers, that the Earth keeps turning even as you crane your neck to watch the news non-stop on your smartphone, and that the president knows this…

The aim was to find a rational, political explanation that makes sense in the long term: communication through emotional management, the promotion of two potential candidates, and opportunism. So, to those of you who have reached the end of this article, I invite you to give this hypothesis some careful thought and, above all, to observe the events to come.

See you soon!