My FB Post:
“For all the hype of a conflict, President Trump and New York City's next mayor, Zohran Mamdani, had a surprising bond when they met Friday in the Oval Office: populist outsiders, lovers of the Big Apple, and two politicians who each want what the other has.” -- Axios
This is no surprise to me. Donald Trump has once again shown his true ideological orientation, this time in the most dramatic fashion—a “lovefest” with the openly Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani. Like Mamdani, Trump is fundamentally a collectivist. Collectivism is the foundation of Socialism, whether of the Fascist or Communist variety.
It’s instructive that, after his meeting with Trump, which he characterized as “productive,” Mamdani reiterated his belief that Trump is a Fascist. Indeed, as Axios reported on “Why it matters: For a few minutes, Mamdani — whom Trump had called a communist — and Trump, whom Mamdani had called a fascist, gave a glimpse of how they might find common ground . . .“ Common ground, indeed! Whether or not Trump is a full-blown Fascist or Mamdani is a full-blown Communist, the fact remains that Fascism and Communism are, as the great champion of The Enlightenment Steven Pincker has observed, “fraternal twins.” No wonder the meeting went so well—these 2 are kindred spirits--Socialist at the core.
Trump, remember, is a life-long New Yorker and Democrat. He and Mamdani both praised FDR, whose Constitution-upending New Deal mimicked Fascism, not Communism. Trump is also a Teddy Roosevelt admirer. TR was the Progressive who ran on the Republican label because he believed he couldn’t win as a Democrat. Like TR, Trump hijacked the Republican Party because he knew he wasn’t Leftist enough to win as a Democrat.
Please don’t tell me that this meeting is a mere pragmatic political ploy. Trump has given Democratic Socialism a nation-wide credibility and prestige it could never have earned on its own. This is how totalitarian Socialism comes to America—not on merits it doesn’t have, but by supposed Capitalists (which Trump is not) granting it a legitimacy it doesn’t and can never deserve. True, they are still political adversaries, and will probably butt heads in the future. But it will be superficial, not fundamental. Trump has pushed the Republican Party sharply to the Left, helping to pave the way for the Mamdani’s of the Democratic Party.
Related Reading:
Zohran Mamdani and Donald Trump Prove That There Are Two Paths Toward Socialism by J.D. Tuccille for Reason
Will Trump’s “State Capitalism … a Hybrid Between Socialism and Capitalism” Make America Great Again? by Michael Chapman for Capitalism Magazine and The Cato Institute
Reason on "Republican Socialism" -- Trump Embraces Mamdani Socialism as 'Practical'
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