Trump and power - A deep divide across America | DW Documentary

A cinematic journey through the first year of Donald Trump's second term as president. Fear, hope, protest, loyalty and disappointment all shape this portrait of the US as a nation in turmoil.

Washington, D.C., and Piedmont, West Virginia. As President Trump's second term sparks fear and alarm in the liberal capital, coal country in Appalachia clings to the hope of a long-awaited economic turnaround.

Only a two-and-a-half-hour drive separates Washington, D.C., from Piedmont, West Virginia — yet the two places exist in hugely different cultural worlds. In liberal D.C., shock about Donald Trump's return for a second term runs deep. Many federal workers fear for their jobs, rights and democracy. In coal country, by contrast, Trump is seen as the last hope for an economic revival. Coal trains may still rumble through town, but factories stand empty and drug problems are tearing through the community. Even so, there's tremendous resilience to be found here.

This documentary follows both places over the course of a year, exploring how people with sharply contrasting realities see Trump's return to the presidency. In Washington, D.C., guerrilla artist Robin Bell uses nighttime video projections to send a message of resistance. In doing so, he becomes a barometer for freedom of expression. In Piedmont, the filmmakers meet former corrections officer and pastor Dave Cowan — a pragmatic man of faith who fears the decline of America while also remaining hopeful that things will finally change.

Filmed up close with the people at the heart of these communities and complemented by the voices of historians, democracy experts and Christian conservatives, the journey follows the first 365 days of Donald Trump's second term as president — and offers a glimpse of what may yet lie ahead.

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