In the 1987 book “Trump: The Art of the Deal,” Donald Trump introduced the notion of “truthful hyperbole,” which he called an “innocent form of exaggeration and very effective form of promotion.” The idea is to use sensational imagery or language to get attention and generate excitement — regardless if it has anything to do with reality.

Who would have thought that this concept would become a predominant political strategy in the Republican Party many years later?

“I could end the war in Ukraine in 24 hours,” then-candidate Trump repeatedly claimed at campaign events. The economy is the “greatest in the history of our country,” the military is the “most powerful” it has ever been, regulations have been “cut at record rates” and the list goes on. The president deftly uses his “facts” — climate change is a hoax, COVID-19 can be cured with hydroxychloroquine, he “won” the 2020 election — to create the most politically expedient “truth.”

The problem is that Americans are increasingly overwhelmed and confused about who and what to believe and about where authority comes from. My students and I often discuss these terms — fact, truth and authority — as they relate to writing. I teach “creative nonfiction,” a term that seems as paradoxical as “truthful hyperbole.” If “nonfiction” is “creative,” isn’t it just fiction? What are the rules for “telling the truth” when writing a memoir or book of personal essays or even an op-ed?

We often start our discussion with “The Site of Memory,” an essay by novelist Toni Morrison, in which she argues that the difference between fact and truth is that truth is not random and requires human intelligence. Truth, then, has to do with how we use and interpret facts through the lens of our own experience and intellect. It is a reflective rather than reactive process, which requires much patience and an open mind. But these qualities — patience, reflection and open-mindedness — all seem to be in short supply these days.

Consider “the news,” for example. Is it factual or truthful or neither? And is one station more factual/truthful than the others? If so, which one: CNN, PBS, Fox, ABC, NBC, CBS or some other? Remember when the news seemed to carry some objective authority? Reporters such as Walter Cronkite and Barbara Walters and David Brinkley seemed to somehow earn our trust. Viewers didn’t constantly wonder if their words/ideas were “true” or had a particular political agenda. Whether they actually did or not, fact and truth and the authority of the news seemed clearer then.

In recent years, things have gotten blurrier. In 2016, Trump started employing the term “fake news,” and his counselor Kellyanne Conway added “alternative facts.” And then it seemed that everything was up for grabs. The president proclaimed that the press was an “opposition party” and “the enemy of the people” and that “lamestream media” could not be trusted.

But it is no longer simply hyperbole or exaggeration. Branding and demonizing the opposition is another central tenet of his political strategy. As is publicly targeting and going after judges, journalists, members of Congress and other “authorities” who have challenged his ideas and policies and questioned his ever-changing facts and truths.

For me, the most egregious example of the president’s manipulation of fact and truth has been his demeaning and misleading depiction of immigrants, using them as scapegoats to justify his aggressive deportation policy. “No, they’re not humans, they’re animals,” he announced at a campaign event. He has also claimed that immigrants are eating people’s pets, are “all rapists, drug dealers, and criminals,” are “poisoning the blood of our country” and are stealing jobs from legal citizens, among many others. But all of these claims are of course untrue and have been disproven. Research shows that immigrants commit crime at a lower rate than citizens do and that migrant workers continue to benefit the U.S. economy.

But this brutal anti-immigrant campaign is being resisted by a broad swath of Americans — who can no longer simply look the other way. I recently witnessed this at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing center in Broadview — where newly arrested immigrants are detained before being deported or moved elsewhere. The detainees have reported awful conditions — limited access to food, water, medication and to communication with attorneys. Not surprisingly, ICE officials will not allow anyone inside to inspect or verify the conditions.

There were 40 or 50 of us protesting — just outside the shiny new metal fence. “No hate, no fear, immigrants are welcome here,” we chanted. “Immigrants’ rights are under attack. Stand up, and fight back!” We were peaceful and nonviolent. But shortly after I arrived, ICE agents decked out in full riot gear walked out on the roof and shot canisters of tear gas at us. Those of us who didn’t have masks or goggles quickly retreated, coughing and eyes burning. After 20 minutes or so, when the gas had cleared, we returned. Someone handed out notecards and ribbons. She wanted us to write notes to the detainees and tie them on the fence: “We will not rest until you are free” and “You are not forgotten,” someone wrote.

The ICE agents on the roof didn’t seem to like this. Soon, they fired another round of tear gas. They would later fire pepper balls and rubber bullets as well. All in attempting to prevent us from exercising our First Amendment rights to free speech — to defend a different truth. A truth that is not random and requires human intelligence and that is rooted in hope rather than fear — in our shared search for the democratic ideals on which this nation was founded.

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Tom Montgomery Fate is a professor emeritus at College of DuPage. His most recent book is “The Long Way Home,” a travel memoir.

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