Trump's "Anti-Communist" Ideological Offensive: Will It Work in the Midterms?

U.S. President Donald Trump and the ruling Republican Party are employing Cold War-style ideological rhetoric, such as the "threat of communism," against the Democratic Party ahead of the midterm elections in November, according to an analysis by Agence France-Presse (AFP) on July 7 (local time).

According to AFP, the Republican Party has adopted this strategy following the victories of several democratic socialist and progressive candidates in Democratic primaries in states such as New York and Colorado.

Not only President Trump but other Republican figures have also frequently used language reminiscent of the anti-communist campaigns of the 1950s.

Analysts explained to AFP that this Republican offensive is an attempt to shift the focus of the upcoming election from a "referendum on Trump" to a "choice between two ideologies."

The analysis suggests that the Republican Party, facing voter anger over inflation, the cost of living, and the impact of the war in Iran, is refining its midterm election strategy centered on ideological attacks.

During his speeches commemorating the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Declaration of Independence at Mount Rushmore on July 3 and the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on July 4, President Trump stated, "The threat of communism has returned to our land (the U.S.)," and "(The threat of communism) is like cancer. It must be cut out. It must be cut out quickly."

Previously, at a religious event held in Washington, D.C. on June 26, President Trump also remarked, "They are not social democrats. They are hardcore atheist communists. They are atheist communists," adding, "They want to completely destroy the traditional American way of life."

High-ranking Republican officials and aides to President Trump are repeating the same message.

House Speaker Mike Johnson appeared on "Fox News Sunday" on July 5 and claimed, "This year's election is no longer a battle between 'common sense' and 'insanity.' It is now a battle between 'common sense' and 'communism,' and the barbarians are already inside the gates. The Democratic Party is now run by Marxists."

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also appeared on "Fox & Friends" on June 29 and said, "The President and many Americans are extremely concerned about how far left the Democratic Party is becoming," adding, "I think we are facing a choice between communism and common sense. That is how the President sees it."

According to an analysis cited by The Washington Post (WP), the frequency of words such as "communism," "communist," and "communist party member" in public statements by prominent U.S. right-wing figures, including social media posts and podcasts, increased by 43% from January to June of this year.

Regarding President Trump's Independence Day speech, Rick Stengel, who served as Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs in the Democratic Obama administration, mocked it in a post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), saying, "It looks like he found an Independence Day speech that Joseph McCarthy wanted to give in 1952 but didn't."

Joseph McCarthy (1908–1957), a former U.S. Senator, was the figure who led the extreme anti-communist frenzy known as "McCarthyism" in the 1950s.

In an analysis article, the British newspaper The Guardian also assessed that President Trump and right-wing media are reviving old "John Birch Society" (JBS) style language to paint Democrats as communists.

The JBS is an American far-right, anti-communist conservative organization founded in 1958.

Robert Reich, a professor emeritus at the Goldman School of Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley, who served as Secretary of Labor in the Democratic Clinton administration, argued in a Guardian column that Trump's "communist threat" offensive is the result of "running out of cards to play."

He pointed out that prices have risen faster than wages, the war in Iran and tariff policies have failed, and public opinion on immigration enforcement and mass deportations has soured. He analyzed that President Trump has resorted to "fear-mongering" because it has become difficult to use the economy, diplomacy, or immigration as election cards.

Reich explained that "red-baiting" was prevalent during the McCarthy era, and that McCarthy's chief counsel, Roy Cohn (1927–1986), later became a mentor to President Trump.

Former Secretary Reich mentioned emerging Democratic figures such as New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (New York), Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson, and Melat Kilos, a candidate who defeated a 15-term incumbent in a Colorado congressional district primary late last month. He stated that they have nothing to do with communism and are gaining popularity because they target corporate power, political corruption, and cost-of-living issues.

He further predicted that because the aversion to the word "socialism" has weakened among the younger generation, "Trump-style red-baiting" may not be of much help to the Republican Party in the midterm elections.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.