1938, O'Neill, translating The Knights by Aristophanes, 424 BC, lines 191-193,
A demagogue must be neither an educated nor an honest man; he has to be an ignoramus and a rogue.

If the majority of our fellow-citizens are more susceptible to the slogans of fear and race hatred than to those of peaceful accommodation and mutual respect among human beings, our political liberties remain at the mercy of any eloquent and unscrupulous demagogue.

What is a demagogue? He is a politician skilled in oratory, flattery and invective; evasive in discussing vital issues; promising everything to everybody; appealing to the passions rather than the reason of the public; and arousing racial, religious, and class prejudices—a man whose lust for power without recourse to principle leads him to seek to become a master of the masses. He has for centuries practiced his profession of 'man of the people'. He is a product of a political tradition nearly as old as western civilization itself.

It is true that America has a paranoid streak in its politics, and demagogues come along from time to time to feed on anger and resentment.

c. 1938, Maury Maverick, The New York Times, quoted in 1970, Richard B. Henderson, Maury Maverick: A Political Biography, page 183,
I never demagogued on our serious questions and stood for civil liberties.

On the subject of foreign aid, although it is a relatively unimportant economic category, it is an area of expenditure that has frequently been demagogued and has been a favorite target of politicians during tough times in the domestic economy.

Talk to anyone with half a brain (and at least half a heart) and they will tell you, regardless of their position, that this is an issue to be weighed, not demagogued.

Demagogue

Meaning

Noun

Verb

Origin

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