“Value rift”: how “racist” statements can affect Donald Trump’s position

The US House of Representatives intends to consider a draft resolution condemning the "racist" words of the head of the White House, Donald Trump, delivered to the congressmen from the Democratic Party. On the eve of this document submitted to the legislators a representative of the state of New Jersey, Congressman Tom Malinowski.

“Tomorrow the House of Representatives will consider my resolution condemning the racist statements of the president. All members of the House will be asked to choose between Ronald Reagan's America, which thanks to immigrants and refugees only grows stronger, and Donald Trump's sowing fear rhetoric, ”the congressman wrote on Twitter.

Earlier, Donald Trump posted on his Twitter post about "progressive" women congressmen, who came from countries whose authorities are "a complete disaster" and "the most corrupt" in the world. According to the head of the White House, now these women "speak loudly to people in the United States, the greatest and strongest nation on earth, how to manage the government."

So it’s interesting to see the “Progressive” Democrat Congresswomen, who now hasn’t been able to make it out. .....

“Why don’t they go back and help restore the places they’ve come from, completely destroyed and overwhelmed with crime, and then come and show us how to do it ... I think Nancy Pelosi (Speaker of the House of Representatives - RT ) will happy to make free trips, ”Trump wrote.

The President did not give any names, but at his own expense, his words were perceived by the Democratic Party women congressmen defending the rights of migrants - Rashida Tlaib, Alexandria Okasio-Cortes, Ayanna Pressli and Ilhan Omar. All of them are US citizens and, except for Lobster, were born on American territory.

Note that the Twitter administration refused to qualify Trump's tweets as violating the social network's policy of prohibiting discrimination on racial and ethnic grounds.

• Congressmen Rashida Tlaib, Alexandria Okasio-Cortes, Ayanna Pressli and Ilhan Omar.
• Reuters
• © Erin Scott

Nevertheless, the head of the White House immediately became a target for accusations of racism - he was criticized not only by many representatives of the Democratic Party, but also by some colleagues in the Republican Party. Soon, the scandal went beyond the United States - Prime Minister of Great Britain Teresa May expressed discontent with Trump's statements, calling them unacceptable.

The text of the resolution, prepared by Malinowski, states that Trump's “racist remarks” legitimize hatred towards people who were not born in America, but received American citizenship.

“(The House of Representatives - RT ) strongly condemns the racist statements of President Donald Trump, legitimizing and reinforcing the fear of new Americans (immigrants who have recently received US citizenship - RT .) And people of color”, the document says.

However, the initiative of the Democrats is unlikely to harm the head of the White House, experts say.

“In the House of Representatives, the Democrats have a majority, but in the Senate, the majority is among the Republicans - the document is unlikely to be approved by the upper house. In addition, the resolution only reflects the congressional position, nothing more, ”explained the director of the US Foundation for the Study of the USA in an interview with RT. Roosevelt at MSU Yuri Rogulev.

"Opponent of spontaneous immigration"

This story enlivened the discussion of Donald Trump's commitment to right-wing ideas, initiated by his political opponents during the 2016 election campaign. Then the anti-immigrant, conservative rhetoric of the policy really attracted some representatives of the right movement to his side. For example, David Duke, a former member of the racist organization of the Ku Klux Klan, has publicly called Trump the best candidate for the presidency. Clearly sympathized with the policy and representatives of the right-wing Alt-Right.

• Riots in Charlottesville, 2017.
• Reuters
• © Joshua Roberts

Donald Trump regularly disavows accusations of racism and xenophobia, but opponents are finding new reasons for such attacks. For example, in early 2017, the FBI published an archive of investigations into alleged cases of racial discrimination against potential tenants at Trump in the 1970s. In some cases, employees of the company allegedly deliberately refused to black clients, saying that the apartment was already occupied.

Trump was most critically criticized due to the reaction to the events of 2017 in Charlottesville - commenting on clashes between supporters and opponents of the demolition of monuments to warlords and soldiers of the Confederation, the politician declared the fault of both parties to the conflict. This caused a flurry of angry comments in the media, who hurried to link the politician with the Ku Klux Klan and accuse him of racism.

At the same time, it is impossible to deny that Trump is really pursuing a tough anti-immigration policy, experts say. It was precisely the cessation of the influx of illegal migrants from Latin America to the United States that was one of the key points of Trump’s election program, and disagreements with Democrats over plans to build a wall on the border with Mexico had previously caused a long shutdown.

According to experts, Trump’s political opponents deliberately exaggerate, speaking of the “racism” of the White House’s head. As noted in the comments for the RT Director of the United States Foundation for them. Roosevelt at Moscow State University Yuri Rogulev, Trump is not a racist, but only against illegal immigration.

“Trump is an opponent of unregulated, spontaneous immigration, and his position resonates in American society. Not because the society is riddled with xenophobia, but simply because the influx of migrants leads to dumping in the labor market, ”the expert explained.

"Society is extremely politicized"

As the topic of “Russian interference” in the elections fades into the background, Trump’s political opponents will try to find other ways to put pressure on the president. Now they use charges against him of racism, experts say. Considering that the next presidential elections will be held in the USA in 2020, the level of mutual accusations between Republicans and Democrats will only grow, experts are sure.

• Donald Trump.
• Reuters
• © Leah Millis

With trump's xenophobia charges, for example, former US Vice President Democrat Joe Biden began his campaign. During his first speech, the politician accused the Trump administration of returning racial segregation orders. The reason for the reproach was the idea of ​​the Republicans to return special certificates for the participation of voters in the elections.

On the other hand, Donald Trump himself began to strengthen the rhetoric against migrants after the accusations of “Russian collusion” were neutralized, experts say.

“After the trump version with Moscow was not confirmed, he began to behave more freely, and his attack on congressmen-democrats is part of this trend,” said Konstantin Blokhin, expert of the Center for Security Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, in an interview with RT.

It is worth noting that, according to a poll conducted by the University of Quinnipek last year, 86% of Democrats are convinced that the head of state is a racist, but exactly the same number of Republicans disagree with this statement.

As Konstantin Blokhin explained in an interview with RT, if there was a consensus on the issue of “Russian intervention” in American society and political circles, regardless of party affiliation, there is no such consensus on migration. In fact, most Republicans are attracted to Trump's tough anti-immigrant rhetoric, the expert said.

“American society is extremely politicized, there is a value split in it. The Republican Party and its supporters are becoming more “trampist”, because the backbone of the party is white Anglo-Saxon Protestants. According to the forecasts of sociologists, by the middle of the century they risk becoming a minority in the United States. Therefore, many Republicans perceive anti-immigrant rhetoric as a guarantee of preserving traditional American identity. Under these conditions, Trump has great chances to win the next presidential election, despite criticism from the Democrats, ”summed up the expert.