In the wake of Capitol riots and Trump’s exit, who will galvanise America’s alt-right?
- The disparate anti-establishment groups unified only by their hatred of the left were whipped into a force by Trump’s rallying cry of ‘Make America Great Again’
- The fallout from the Capitol attacks has divided two of the main groups. Republicans who want their support may well have to recreate a version of Trump come 2024
The alt-right is a conglomerate of far-right groups, white supremacists and an assortment of conspiracy buffs. The movement believes the structural landscape of American institutions has shifted to the left. The government, media, universities, corporations and, more recently, tech companies are considered to be upholding varying levels of socialism, Marxism and communism.
Simply put, the alt-right is anti-establishment. Because of their disdain for authority, they have never had a unitary structure or a single leader. However, Trump was an exception. Notionally a political outsider, he legitimised the alt-right’s paranoia, and presented himself as their bannerman. But with Trump’s exit, there appear to be splits in how the movement ought to move forward politically.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation reportedly considers QAnon a domestic terrorism threat. As the FBI began charging rioters at the US Capitol, QAnon was among those claiming the entire uprising was staged; the peaceful pro-Trump rally was infiltrated by “radical leftists” from the Black Lives Matter movement and Antifa. The latter is an anti-fascist movement as loosely structured as the alt-right.
Chaos at the US Capitol was a Trumpian farce, with shades of Mao
For this reason, some of Trump‘s allies in Congress have identified with QAnon conspiracies. Even though many Republicans have criticised Trump for his alleged role in the riots, 147 Senators and Congress Representatives still voted, after the attacks, to overturn the election results. If Trump were to endorse one of these 147 as his heir apparent, QAnon could gravitate accordingly.
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‘Proud Boys’ joined pro-Trump protest outside Las Vegas vote counting facility
At the risk of stating the obvious, the Proud Boys take immense pride in the Capitol Hill attack, seeing it as a justified rebellion against a rigged election. And for this reason, they despise QAnon. For one, the Proud Boys think it to be ridiculous for anyone to deny that Trump supporters mobbed the US Capitol. To them, it was important to unabashedly take ownership of the event.
Simply put, the Proud Boys have disavowed one of Trump’s largest networks of hardcore loyalists. But even more revealing is their fury at Trump’s statement that all who rioted would face the full force of the law.
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US President Donald Trump condemns violence at the US Capitol
The Proud Boys saw this as high treason, and called Trump a “coward” and “extraordinarily weak” for betraying the very people he whipped into a frenzy. Believing they have been played, the Proud Boys are now on the lookout for a leader they can endorse as a true nationalist.
Prominent commentators like Tomi Lahren are the face of a third segment in the alt-right. They have cautiously distanced themselves from the violence, voiced their gratitude to Trump, but also emphasised the need to move on, for “Make America Great Again” to become a post-Trump nationalist movement.
Whereas the Proud Boys and QAnon represent different forms of radicalism that mainstream Republicans would struggle to co-opt, the third segment may still somewhat resemble the Republican core.
Prashant Waikar is a senior analyst at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore