Donna M. Goldstein is Professor of Anthropology at the University of Colorado Boulder, USA.

Kristen Drybread is a cultural anthropologist at the University of Colorado Boulder, USA.

Editors' Introduction: Anthropological Meditations: Illiberal Politics and Corruption in the Trump Era, Section I: Corruption as the Misappropriation of Societal Values, 1. Sycophantic Politics: Rule Breaking, Entitlement, and White-Collar Crime in Trump's Orbit, 2. On Calling Donald Trump "Corrupt", 3.Corruption as the Through Line: Overlooked Establishment Corruption, Why Trumpism is No Accident, and Why Corruption Has No End, Section II: Deliberate Cruelty, 4. Descending from Sadism to Trumpism: Jeffrey Epstein and the Befouling of U.S. Politics, 5. Corruption against Humanity: Leveraging the Pandemic in Trump's Re-election Campaign, 6. The Illiberality of Trump's Lawless Bipolitical Immigration Actions, Section III: Explaining Trumpism Abroad, 7. Why is Donald Trump So Popular in Southeastern Nigeria and What Can We Learn From It? Undermining Truth and Enabling Corruption, 8. "Tropical Trump": Illiberal Politics and the Digital Life of(Anti)Corruption in Brazil, 9. Manipulative Statecraft: The Disinformation Campaigns and Presidential Powers of Trump and Putin, Section IV: The Language, Semiotics, and Grammars of Trump Power, 10."Lock Her Up!": A Biography of a Trump-Era Chant and the Banalityof Misogyny, 11. Slogans of White Supremacy: Imagined Minority Corruption in Trump-Era Politics, 12. Digital Hatred in Corruption's Defense: The Role of the "Bread Bakers" in 4chan's "President Trump General" Threads, Section V: Trump-Era Lack of Concern for Collective Well-Being, 13. Trump as Benevolent/Authoritarian Boss, 14. Trump's Corruption and the Virus of Polarization: Race, Class, and the Reign of the Wealthy, 15. Hailing All Neoliberals: Inaction, Corruption, and the Trumpist Response to COVID-19