Trump’s Shock Troops: the ‘Alt Right’
BBC Radio, August 25, 2016
Why has Donald Trump clinched the Republican Party nomination despite angering a long list of key groups of American voters? Part of his success can be explained by an element of his political base: the “alt-right”. It’s a mostly young, disparate movement which organises and congregates online, and its supporters have little in common with traditional Republicans. They are tribal and mostly sceptical about religion. They yearn for a strong leader and they loathe political correctness with a passion. Some are leading figures in the white supremacist movement, a development that frightens many mainstream Republicans who promised a more inclusive party after Mitt Romney’s defeat four years ago. And in an interesting twist, some of the leading voices in the movement come from Britain.In this episode, David Aaronovitch finds out more about the alt-right – who are they, what do they believe, and for the next four months what role will they play in the Trump campaign and American politics at large?
Guests:
Milo Yiannopoulos, senior technology editor, Breitbart News
Cathy Young, columnist, Newsday
Reporter: Mike Wendling.
Listen here.
