The Bowers Writers House sponsored professor of political science Dr. E. Fletcher McClellan on Monday, Jan. 21 for a lecture on the parallels between a fictional dystopian novel and the current presidential exchange of power.

When compared to Philip Roth’s novel “The Plot Against America,” the similarities of the fake election are uncannily matched to the 2016 election.

McClellan explained in his talk that in the novel, history takes a turn from the 1940 election where the famed pilot Charles Lindbergh runs against Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) and wins. Lindbergh is obviously not a politician, and this is where the similarities begin with President Donald Trump. In reality, Lindbergh was not even a candidate, but Roth returns to the 40s to have his eight-year-old self tell this alternative history.

Written in 2004, the novel was speculated to have been centered around the George W. Bush administration, but more recent events have shifted into a parallel with the storyline.

McClellan called the parallels with Trump and Lindbergh both “striking and disturbing.”

“What we have before us are his campaign promises, developed from the Tea Party, the Congressional Republican agenda and his inner circle of populists,” stated McClellan.