[Vision2020] Donald Trump has his right-wing European allies

[Moscow Cares]

Courtesy of today's (March 2, 2017) Moscow-Pullman Daily News with special thanks to Nick Gier.

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His View: Donald Trump has his right-wing European allies

By Nick Gier

Last summer Nigel Farage, former leader of Britain's anti-immigrant Independent Party, appeared, with what one reporter called a "wide Cheshire cat grin," at a Trump rally in Mississippi. Using alternative facts and fear mongering about immigrants, Farage, whose ancestors, ironically, were Huguenot refugees from France, had been instrumental in turning voters against the European Union.

Farage's party has slid from a high of 20 percent during the EU campaign to 14 percent this month. Other Euro-sceptic and anti-immigrant parties are stronger, and their leaders also see Trump as an ally.

Marine Le Pen, leader of France's right-wing National Front, is surging in the presidential polls and will certainly find herself in a run-off with centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron. In an eerie parallel with the U.S. election, the Russian intelligence agencies are spreading fake stories about Macron. A Russian bank is also lending money to Le Pen's campaign.

Le Pen is anti-EU and she is calling for a French exit. Following Trump, Le Pen promises to put France first as she taps into the twin fears of globalization and immigration.

Geert Wilders, known as the Dutch Trump, was a popular guest at the Republican Convention last July. His anti-immigrant Freedom Party is on track to win the most seats in the March 15 parliamentary election.

Wilders promises to close the Dutch borders, pull out of the climate change accord, ban the Quran, shut down mosques and Muslim schools, opt out of the Euro currency, and leave both the EU and the United Nations. Recently he was photographed cutting the Dutch star out of the EU flag.

In early December, Wilders was convicted of hate speech after he called Moroccan immigrants "scum" and led an audience in an anti-Muslim chant. The court declined to fine him, declaring the conviction would be deterrent enough. Like Trump, Wilders ridiculed the judges.

Although conservative German Chancellor Angela Merkel is trailing her Social Democratic opponent for the fall election, she still can boast a 74 percent approval rating. This is quite remarkable considering her controversial decision to allow over 1 million refugees into her country. Contrary to what her critics claim, the crime rate has not gone up because of them.

Frauke Petry, leader of anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany, congratulated Trump on his victory saying she was "a natural ally at his side." Her party is polling only 12 percent nationally. At least Petry is not calling for Germany to leave the EU.

At one time Denmark's anti-immigrant People's Party was the second largest party, taking 21 percent of the vote in the 2015 election. In 2014 it won 27 percent of the Danish votes for the European Parliament. Recently it was charged with misusing EU funds, and as a result of the scandal, its support has fallen to 15 percent.

Because of pressure from the People's Party, the Danish Parliament was forced to pass Europe's strictest immigration law. Newcomers may not bring a spouse younger than 24 years old (aimed at young Muslim wives), they must post a bond of $10,000, and their welfare benefits are nearly half of what they had been.

Just as Trump has drawn working class workers away the Democrats, the People's Party now polls at 30 percent among unskilled workers, as opposed to 25 percent for the Social Democrats, their traditional home. The People's Party supports generous welfare benefits as long as they don't go to non-European immigrants.

The large influx of refugees has forced Denmark and Sweden to reintroduce controls at their borders. The results have been dramatic: asylum seekers in Denmark fell from 21,000 in 2015 to 5,300 as of September 2016.

The Economist magazine observes that "many countries are shifting from a universal civil nationalism towards the blood-and-soil, ethnic sort."

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Seeya 'round town, Moscow, because . . .

"Moscow Cares" (the most fun you can have with your pants on)
http://www.MoscowCares.com
  
Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho
  
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