"I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it any more!"

Few words seem to capture the essence of Donald Trump's presidential campaign better than those of crazed TV anchorman Howard Beale in the 1976 satirical film, "Network."

Beale, portrayed by Peter Finch, seemed to sum up perfectly the mood of the American public at the time, during an unhinged, on-air outburst: "We know things are bad - worse than bad. They're crazy. It's like everything everywhere is going crazy."

Beale's ratings go through the roof because, as a network executive explains, "The American people want somebody to articulate their rage for them." 

Now, four decades later, Trump--who, in real life, is as familiar on Americans' TVs as Beale was on the movie's fictional screens--is articulating Americans' rage.

In 1976, the U.S. was recovering from our long involvement in Vietnam and a perception that America's place in the world was slipping. Inflation and unemployment seemed out of control. Watergate, and Richard Nixon's subsequent resignation, left citizens distrusting their government and other institutions. Jimmy Carter would soon refer to the nation as being in a "malaise." And he won in 1976.

In 2016, America is involved in conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. And, to lesser degrees, Syria and Libya. The lifting of sanctions against Iran leads many to think there's nothing to stop the leading state sponsor of terrorism from developing nuclear weapons. U.S. borders aren't secure, which seems insane in an age in international terrorism. And there is, once again, a pervasive belief that America's position in the world is slipping. 

Inflation, if you believe the current administration, seems in check. But that's largely because the economy isn't growing, leaving most Americans no better off than they were eight years ago. And it's hard to believe the government's economic numbers anyway. For instance, unemployment--real unemployment (U6)--is roughly three times the official 5% level. The broadest employment-to-population ratio shows unemployment at 40%, reaching levels comparable to, yes, the 1970's.

And, while there has been as yet no universally galvanizing Watergate type scandal during the Obama regime, the steady drip-drip-drip of one scandal after another--Hillary's emails, Benghazi, the IRS's Tea Party targeting and its coverup, Fast and Furious, etc., has eroded what little trust there was in this administration. Gallup reports that, much as in the "I'm mad as hell" 70's, fully three-quarters of Americans believe the current government is corrupt.

In 1976, it was the fictional Howard Beale who articulated the nation's rage. In 2016, it's Donald Trump. This is his great appeal. 

Trump may not literally shout, "I'm mad as hell!" like Beale did, but his campaign slogan, Make America Great Again, essentially means "I'm not gonna take it any more." I'm not going to take career politicians running the country. I'm not going to take the party establishment determining who should run for office. I'm not going to take Beltway pundits telling me how to vote.

In the movie, Beale galvanizes millions of Americans, just as Trump has in real life. Yet, Beale was a fictional character, mouthing the (brilliantly-written) words of screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky. Trump is a real person.

Or is he?

Like the fictional anchorman, Trump has appeared on Americans' television screens for years. He's appeared in tabloids and the society (and, admittedly, sometimes business) pages for decades. In most people's minds, he is as much mythical character--private 757-flying, supermodel-dating, risk-taking gazillionaire--as he is a real person. And, indeed, he seems to relish playing that character. At least a bit.

When Trump looks into the camera and--metaphorically, at least--bellows, "I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it any more," does he really mean it, or is he just playing that character? And, more importantly, what specifically would a President Trump do to reward the trust of those he's inspired?

In 1976, it took another four years, and Ronald Reagan's unflagging optimism, to turn America around and start the nation on the road to recovery. Can Trump be the voice of anger and the voice of optimism? Will he, like Reagan, advance a consistently conservative agenda that will move the nation forward? Or is he just playing a role?