Why Trump Supporters Love Putin

There was a time in American history when genuflecting to Russia was a leftist disease. In the 1930s, some on the Left even went so far as to move to the USSR, to help Stalin build communism.

Even during the Cold War, after the disillusionment with the Soviet regime had set in, some liberals were still inclined to see things in Russia that were better than in America. They were, in the words of Jean Kirkpatrick, Ronald Reagan’s UN Ambassador, “blame America first” Democrats.

The Russia-loving roles have flipped

But now, amazingly, the roles have flipped. It is the MAGA Republicans, members of the erstwhile Party of Reagan, who have become Russia’s admirers.

To be sure, the Soviet Union is no more and communism is a distant memory there. However, Putin’s regime is in many ways more repressive at home than the late-stage USSR – and more aggressive and rabidly anti-American in its foreign policy.

Why the admiration, then?

This is largely because the Republican Party is now the Party of Donald Trump. Many erstwhile supporters of Reagan and Bush have left – and those who remain have been swept into the Trump cult.

No Putin, no Russia?

Putin and Trump are part of a recent trend on the Far Right toward personalization of politics. Putin is a Russian czar in all but name. A Russian official famously equated him with Russia, declaring “If there is no Putin, then there is no Russia.”

Trump supporters are similar leader worshippers, enthusiastically accepting anything that comes out of Trump’s mouth as gospel truth. They strongly distrust American institutions – not only Congress, the courts, the media and democratic elections, but such hallowed ones as [even] the military.

Modern authoritarians are keen on high personal wealth

While past dictators in the mold of Stalin or Hitler were typically uninterested in personal wealth, money plays a key role in the cult of modern authoritarians.

Putin has pilfered enough from the Russian state to be, by some estimates, the richest man in the world. But instead of being outraged, most ordinary Russians, from whom Putin’s money was shamelessly stolen and who have one of the lowest living standards in the industrial world, admire the palatial splendor in which Putin lives.

Trump’s purported great wealth is also a major part of his appeal. His MAGA people don’t care that his fortune was inherited, not earned. They also don’t mind that his business ventures invariably wind up in bankruptcy – or that he cheats, stiffs his contractors and avoids paying taxes.

Clearly, in the eyes of their ardent supporters, conventional rules and moral standards don’t apply to great leaders such as Putin and Trump.

Putin as Trump’s role model

Trump looks up to dictators and wants to emulate them. Putin, with his flashy caudillo machismo, total control over Russia and ruthless suppression – and often murder – of his opponents, seems like Trump’s obvious role model.

Thus, it is conventional wisdom that MAGA loves Putin merely because Trump admires him and tells them to do likewise.

This is doubtless true, but MAGA is more than a mere one-man personality cult. MAGA is a political movement, it has an ideology which is, amazingly enough, quite close to Putinism – the ideology which Putin has imposed on Russia.

MAGA wraps itself in the flag – sometimes quite literally – and likes to brag about its nativist patriotism. However, the truth is that MAGA rejects modern America. It hates its diversity, minority rights and permissiveness and looks back to some mystical past.

Putin’s crusade for “traditional values” appeals to MAGA people

MAGA wants to recapture America’s greatness – to return to the time when it was mostly white while African Americans, Hispanics and other minorities were kept in their place. When white men worked while their womenfolk stayed at home and cooked dinner. When families went to church on Sunday, etc.

This is why Putin’s crusade for “traditional values” strongly appeals to MAGA. Putin hates the modern world and wants to turn back the clock. He has banned LGBTQ, feminism, abortion. A law was even passed in his Russia decriminalizing domestic violence.

A backward economy

The most extraordinary parallel is this: Russia’s economy is backward, relying on the staples of the past – on the production and export of raw materials, mostly oil and gas.

Russia’s previous modest attempts to build a modern economy, reliant on information technology, intellectual capital and entrepreneurial spirit, were abandoned even before Putin unleashed his illegal invasion in Ukraine and doomed Russia to international isolation and, as a consequence, technological obsolescence.

Innovation requires openness

By contrast, America is a global leader in innovation. But this is exactly why MAGA hates modern America. Successful innovation requires openness and free thinking. It draws on the talent and ideas from every corner of the world.

Instead, MAGA people want to return to the economy of the past. If elected, Trump promises to “drill, baby, drill” – in other words, to saturate America with the industries and the dead-end jobs of the past.

In its ardent pursuit of retro-mindedness, MAGA America would indeed be close to Russia – which is the true reason why America’s Far Right admires Putin.