Trump’s dramatic tactics to blunt negative publicity

Desperate to ensure his Republican party will maintain its narrow majority in Congress in the November mid-term election, Donald Trump has not only promoted his right-wing conservative Make America Great Again (MAGA) agenda but also sought to trash Democrat opponents. MAGA cultivates white identity politics by stirring up white demographic anxieties, cultural challenges, and determination to preserve majority-white status. In a poll conducted by YouGov in March this year, 60 per cent of Republicans identified themselves as MAGA, making it the largest modern movement within the party.

This could be a determining factor in the coming election as white Americans make up 56-59 per cent who identify as "White alone." Brown Hispanics are 19-20.5 per cent, blacks 12.6-14 per cent and Asians 6-7 per cent. As indigenous citizens are 0.9 per cent, these figures show the natives (mistakenly known as "Indians") have been completely overwhelmed. While Trump will need a majority of Whites plus some Browns and Blacks if he is to win but he is likely to alienate liberal Whites as well as Browns and Blacks by attacking Browns.

Minnesota hosts the largest US Somali diaspora with 80,000-100,000 residents thanks to a combination of early refugee resettlement programmes, entry-level employment, social networks, and supportive local agencies. After the community had taken root, US resident family members and Somalis living elsewhere, moved to Minnesota

As Trump's positive poll rating fell to 37 per cent and his disapproval rating rose to 60 per cent, he seems to have been prompted to adopt a dramatic tactic to deflect public attention from his low standing. At six in the morning on October 12th, federal agents staged a raid on the Washington, DC, home of US House of Representative lawmaker Ilhan Omar. As an immigrant from Somalia, she is the first African refugee to become a member of Congress, the first woman of colour to represent Minnesota, and one of the first two Muslim-American women to be elected to Congress, the first being Michigan's Rashida Tlaib who is of Palestinian ethnicity.

Minneapolis' Somalis are now "a bit under siege" by the Trump administration, a local official pointed out but said the community has support of city leaders in the Twin Cities, notably Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Saint Paul Mayor Melvin Carter. The Somalis contribute $8 billion to the local economy. Although 30 per cent live below the poverty line, 70 per cent are employed, more than the figure in the general population. Somalis work as truck drivers, nurses and retail staff in markets and shops and have opened small businesses.

Born in Somalia, Omar and her family fled the country's civil war when she was eight. The family spent four years in a refugee camp in Kenya. In 1995, Omar's family secured asylum in the US, arrived in New York in 1995 before living for a time in Arlington, Virginia. The family settled in Minneapolis, where her father worked as a taxi driver and then for the post office.

After her mother died, her father and grandfather – who raised her – urged her to understand the importance of democracy and to become involved in politics. At 14, she accompanied her grandfather to party meetings and served as his interpreter. Along with her grandfather, she became a US citizen in 2000. She was 17 years old. She graduated from North Dakota State University in 2011 with a bachelor's degree in political science and international relations. She later became a fellow at the University of Minnesota's Humphrey School of Public Affairs.

Asked about Omar this week, Trump denied instigating the investigation. He stated, disingenuously, "I have nothing to do with it.” He said, “I think she’s a terrible person. But that’s really up to the DOJ (Justice Department)." Normally, the Justice Department avoids taking any action that might be seen as influencing an election within 60 days of the election. Omar is seeking re-election in the November 3rd election, which is less than three weeks away.

Omar has been one of Trump’s most constant and vocal foes since he launched his political career. Trump has retaliated by urging her to leave the US. And in February, he responded to Omar’s heckling over his State of the Union address by demanding she be deported along with Michigan's Tlaib.

In response to the raid, Omar posted on X "Make no mistake: this is an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement. For ten years, Trump has targeted me with baseless lies and smear campaigns. This is just the latest escalation in his campaign of political intimidation.”

On October 14th, The Hill published an opinion article by veteran Democrat strategist Max Burns who wrote, "If Trump’s goal is to silence Omar, he fundamentally misunderstands both Omar and the limits of authoritarianism. In his race to silence any and all Democrats who dare to speak out about his abuses of power, Trump has succeeded only in weakening the rule of law and exposing Republicans as a party of small people willing to shred our liberties for their own short-term political gain."