A provocative new book set for release this fall, Backlash Presidents by political scientist Julia Azari, offers a sobering framework for understanding Donald Trump.

Azari’s central thesis is striking: Most presidents preserve the racial status quo. But when one dares to challenge it, the result isn’t necessarily lasting progress — it often clears a path for a successor driven by resentment, lawlessness, and norm-breaking.

She points out that Trump’s first term mirrors the presidencies of Andrew Johnson and Richard Nixon.

Each followed a transformative leader who disrupted America’s racial hierarchies — Abraham Lincoln, Lyndon Johnson, and Barack Obama — and each unleashed a politics of backlash in response.

Interestingly, all three backlash presidents ultimately faced impeachment proc

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