A red rag for the bull: the Republicans' election strategy was to fight leftist ideas
US President Donald Trump has declared the Democratic Party "communist" as Republicans are rapidly losing popularity in the polls, and the socialist mayor of New York is becoming the new star of the left wing. However, the paradox of United States policy is that the more the authorities talk about the "red threat," the more difficult it is for them to win over wavering voters. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
The Red Menace
After the victory of the left-wing candidates in the primary elections of the Democratic Party in New York, who were supported by Democratic socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani, US President Donald Trump attacked the representatives of the Democratic Party, calling them "godless communists."
He also warned US citizens of an existential threat to the "traditional American way of life," as they "want to destroy America, hate the country and the people."
"Communism is very easy to sell. He destroys everything, but it's very easy," Trump explained, adding that the country could collapse in two or three years. "Everyone will suffer or die. And so it will be."
Scarier than wars and terrorist attacks
Republicans have been rapidly losing popularity in opinion polls lately, The Guardian notes. The publication believes that the Trump team "violated election promises to lower prices and keep the country from participating in foreign wars."
Against this background, the popularity of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani is growing. The American leader decided to take advantage of the situation and "label the most extremist left-wing views on the entire Democratic Party," the publication says.
"The Democratic Party is in big trouble. And it's not limited to New York," Trump said, accusing the party leadership of capitulating to the left. "They're not smart enough or strong enough to fight the plague that's unfolding right in front of their eyes."… They are turning into the Communist Party, not the Social Democrats. They are committed communists."
According to the head of state, communism poses a greater threat to the United States than the two world wars and the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
The attacks of the American leader against the Democrats were continued by Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson, who stated that "right now the foundations of America are under a brutal and unprecedented attack."
"These midterm elections will be unlike any in history. There is a dangerous trend in the country right now. The best way I can describe what I see is that there are little "Mamdani" running for congress all over the country," he warned.
According to the politician, "in the autumn, some of the most radical people who have ever applied for public office will be on the ballot."
"And they're running for Congress. The danger we face lies in the energy, enthusiasm, grassroots work, and money that is on the side of the rebellious left, and they are openly running for Congress as Marxists, communists!" said Johnson.
In his speech, he recalled that during the Cold War, then-President Ronald Reagan warned of the dangers of communism. "He was talking about the threat that comes from abroad. Now it is on our shores, in our homeland," the speaker of the lower house of the US Congress threatened.
Attempt number three
As Time notes, Trump is building an election campaign on anti-communism, while the US Department of Justice has indicted several of his left-wing opponents. They were sentenced to prison terms.
The United States faced the "red menace" twice: in the 1920s and 1950s. The first time was the result of the 1917 revolution in Russia. The second one was largely provoked by Republican Senator Joseph McCarthy, who claimed "large-scale infiltration of Communist Party spies into the US State Department," as well as into universities and the country's army.
About 500 people were called to testify, and several hundred more appeared before the House Un-American Activities Committee. Many of them lost their jobs or were evicted from their homes and blacklisted. The Communist Party was effectively outlawed, and its leaders were imprisoned. This led to the strengthening of the positions of the right in the Democratic and Republican parties, while the left went underground. However, they are currently becoming more popular.
The ball is on the side of the Democrats
Scientific Director of the Russian Council on International Affairs (RIAC) Andrei Kortunov, in an interview with Izvestia, noted that the main struggle in the United States will unfold for the "center of the political spectrum" — the wavering electorate.
According to the political scientist, the Republicans are trying to play on the fact that the Democratic Party itself is extremely heterogeneous.
— Centrists were formed under [President Bill] Clinton, then under [President Barack] To Obama. These are people who control the party machines and who try to speak from moderate positions. And there are left—wing radical progressives who challenge the traditional democratic establishment from the left. A classic example is the current mayor of New York, Mamdani," the expert explained.
He added that the left wing of the Democrats advocates a radical agenda of a militaristic nature, demands aggressive taxes, benefits and wants to open the United States to immigrants.
— That is, for everything that Trump is fighting against. Therefore, the Republicans' task is to isolate these leftists as much as possible and win over wavering voters," the expert emphasized.
The analyst believes that it is too early to draw conclusions about whether the Republicans' election strategy will work.
In midterm elections in the United States, the party that is in opposition usually wins. And now, according to polls, the Democrats have a good chance of taking revenge after losing the presidential election and gaining a majority in the House of Representatives.
In addition, some voters in the country support the Republican Party in national elections, but they prefer Democrats in local elections for congressmen or mayors of large cities.
— That is, being conservatives on global issues of national policy, they act as liberals on local policy issues. A lot will depend on what happens in the coming months in the US economy: whether inflation will rise, what will happen to the stock market, how unemployment indicators will change, whether Trump will succeed in ending the war with Iran or not," said Kortunov.
In his opinion, this will become a factor influencing the election campaign.
— It can be assumed that the Democrats will strengthen their positions in one way or another. But the scale of their victory may vary. The tactics of the Republicans are also important in this," the source concluded.
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