A formidable obstacle for Donald Trump’s Republican opponents and, in the end, American voters, is his tendency to align with America’s enemies and autocrats, as well as his harsh rhetoric that is evocative of Nazi propaganda.
Immigrants are “poisoning the blood” of the United States, according to the ex-president, who is likely to be the next commander in chief. He made the warning over the weekend. In his most recent cowardly capitulation to the war crimes-accused ex-KGB officer, he reiterated Russian President Vladimir Putin’s efforts to undermine American democracy.
Trump’s remarks at a rally in New Hampshire on Saturday, the first-in-the-nation GOP primary state, go against the political and philosophical traditions and principles of the United States. These events mark the most recent indication that Trump, who attempted to reverse the decision of the people during the 2020 election, will take even more drastic measures if reelected. Also, his statements will probably help President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign, which is based on the idea that Biden is the only one who can stop an ex-president from returning to power and destroying American democracy. But polls still show the incumbent lagging Trump in key swing states, so it’s not boosting his cause just yet.
While Trump’s detractors should exercise restraint in their criticism, it is important to comprehend his inflammatory goals and carefully assess the danger he represents to global democratic values, which are in jeopardy due to the rise of autocracies in countries like Iran, Russia, and China.
It would be foolish to discount Trump’s statements just because he is no longer in government; they continue to sow political instability. It is clear that Trump is trying to incite hatred and bigotry towards immigrants through his harsh rhetoric on the subject. He is also capitalising on the widespread fear that non-White people pose a danger to White Christian supremacy. At a time when political polarisation is already at an emotional peak, his words endangered every racial, ethnic, and religious minority. Meanwhile, he’s trying to capitalise on the Biden administration’s handling of the southern border surge by making the danger of undocumented migrants seem worse than it actually is. The Republican Party has been calling this a crisis for a long time, and the Obama administration has failed to provide a coherent political narrative to address this.
Central to Trump’s appeal is violent and frequently racist immigration rhetoric. He gained political traction through his conspiratorial campaign about the birthplace of former president Barack Obama. From his inaugural address in the summer of 2015 onward, his campaign rhetoric was fueled by defamation of Mexicans. No one should be surprised by Trump’s readiness to destroy American political systems in order to consolidate his power, given his history of attempted electoral fraud. In a demagogic turn, he has recently accused his political opponents of as “vermin,” evoking Nazi propaganda once again, and said that Biden, not he, poses the greatest danger to democracy.
Meanwhile, Trump is trying to bait his detractors into a trap. He energises his most ardent followers and throws his opponents for a loop by violating standards of generally accepted political speech in order to generate indignation. He is well-aware that when he invokes images of European fascism from the 1930s in his rallies, it sets off a media frenzy. He uses this to his advantage, convincing his followers that the “left” is plotting against him and, by implication, them. The backlash he receives from his detractors actually fortifies him.
Critiques of Trump that claim he would bring democracy to its knees run the risk of diluting the serious threats he actually poses as president. Republican former Wyoming representative Liz Cheney has bravely come out against Trump, and now she is warning that he will remain in office indefinitely if elected next year. She claims the nation is slumbering towards totalitarianism. Trump has advocated for the dismantling of the Constitution. Although his present language suggests he may be able to cancel a future general election, there is no evidence to support this claim.
Nonetheless, the ex-president is obviously taking a more radical stance. He has consistently demonstrated to his supporters that he is an outsider who has never been a part of the Washington establishment, even if he holds the highest office, by using fiery rhetoric and making pledges that would defy the law if passed. His supporters love him because he is a rule breaker, and his increasingly anti-democratic speeches support this image. But given Trump’s history of intemperance, it’s to be expected that his continued efforts to prove himself will push him even more to the extreme right of US politics.
A more plausible model for Trump would be a modern tyrant, such as Viktor Orban of Hungary, a hero of the “America First” right whom Trump praised over the weekend, rather than the historically charged analogies from the 1930s. Orban is a member of the White nationalist, authoritarian, Christian right-wing ideological glue that binds Trump, Putin, and other like leaders. For personal gain, they undermine electoral and political processes while simultaneously undermining the press and the judiciary, which restrain their anti-democratic tendencies. Just like Trump, Putin’s top EU friend Orban is fighting to cut off Ukraine’s financial and military lifeblood, rendering the country defenceless in the face of Russia’s savage invasion of Ukraine, which Putin has framed as a proxy war against the West.
Although Hungary appears to be a democratic society, a strongman named Viktor Orban was able to undermine the credibility and institutions that tried to keep him in check. As a result, the United States should take this as a red flag warning.
First and foremost, with less than a month to go until the election, Trump’s extremism raises serious concerns for his primary opponents. These opponents have been afraid to publicly criticise Trump for fear of losing support among Republicans. The Republican Party’s inability to confront its leader, who consistently offers solace to US enemies like Putin, is further demonstrated by this. The party formerly boasted of prevailing in the Cold War against the Kremlin.
Supporters of the former president voted for him in the most recent two elections for a variety of reasons. Some felt the political and economic structures of the nation had let them down for a long time. After over a decade of draining foreign conflicts, others welcomed his “America First” philosophy. A common complaint from Trump supporters is that the media, the government, and the political “elites” overlook them. They also claim that Trump is the only leader in a long time to represent their political and cultural views.
Everyone knows who Trump is and what he might do in a second term following his failed effort to reverse the 2020 election and his use of the most divisive and nasty rhetoric in modern election history.
What does it reveal about America, its political culture, and the mood of its people at this vital point in history that millions of voters appear ready to embrace his extremism? That is the most important question raised by his weekend of zealotry and bigotry.