In Deep Red South Carolina, Donald Trump’s campaign against “communist” Democrats is resonating with Republican voters ahead of November’s midterms, as fears of left-wing extremism become a driving force in American politics.
President Trump traveled to Myrtle Beach this week to campaign for Darline Graham Nordone, the Republican candidate in South Carolina’s special Senate runoff election. His message was characteristically combative, warning supporters that Democrats represent a “communist menace” threatening American values.
“So the Democrats hate our country. They’re communists,” Trump declared at the rally, repeating variations of the accusation nearly a dozen times throughout his speech. “They’re radical left lunatics.”
Voters Echo Anti-Communist Sentiment
Outside polling stations across South Carolina, voters expressed similar concerns. One air force veteran, who identified only as Chestnut, told reporters he was “a true American” who rejects communism and socialism. His sentiments appeared widely shared among the Republican base.
Charles Rogers, leaving a polling station in Marion, voiced concerns about the Democratic Socialists of America’s influence on the Democratic Party. “Democrats used to be for the working man, but something’s changed,” he said. “I do not agree with the DSA, and more Democrats are backing them with crazy ideas.”
Lee and Donna Criswell, voting in Darlington County, echoed these themes. “We’re concerned about the socialism thing going on in some parts of the country,” Lee said. “We want to maintain our freedoms.”
Trump’s Strategy Amplified by Conservative Media
Trump’s red-baiting rhetoric has found a receptive audience in conservative media outlets like Fox News, where mentions of “socialism” and “communism” have surged since January. According to analysis of television transcripts, the word “socialist” or “socialism” has appeared nearly 6,000 times, while “communist” has been used over 1,700 times.
“Trump and Fox News work in tandem on these things. They’re mutually reinforcing,” said Brian Leiter, a law professor at the University of Chicago. “Trump understands red-baiting better than anyone, because who was his mentor? Roy Cohn. And Roy Cohn was, of course, legal counsel to Joseph McCarthy in the original purge and political persecution.”
Leiter noted that Fox News often features Democratic Socialists who, unlike more media-savvy progressives like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez or Zohran Mamdani, reinforce negative stereotypes about the left. “None of these people – Zohran Mamdani, Bernie Sanders, AOC – none of them are communists. They’re not even close.”
Progressive Wins Fuel Conservative Backlash
The victories of progressive candidates like Mamdani in New York City, Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan’s Senate primary, and Angie Nixon in Florida’s Senate primary have been celebrated by Democrats as signs of renewed energy on the left. However, these wins have also provided fresh ammunition for conservative commentators and Trump’s campaign narrative.
In South Carolina, where no Democrat has won a statewide election in two decades, these national trends feel distant. Zachary Cogan, a retired army engineer who voted in Lamar, dismissed concerns about shifting political winds. “South Carolina has no danger of turning purple,” he said. “When you have to say Chuck Schumer is the more moderate of the Democrats, that’s going the wrong way.”</
The rhetoric has intensified as the November midterms approach, with Trump positioning himself as the defender against what he describes as a radical left takeover of American democracy.
Why it Matters
Trump’s invocation of Cold War-era fears represents a calculated effort to mobilize his base and frame the upcoming midterms as an existential struggle between American patriotism and communist ideology. This strategy, amplified by conservative media, risks deepening political polarization at a time when democratic norms face unprecedented challenges. The effectiveness of this approach in South Carolina suggests that red-baiting tactics may play an increasingly prominent role in shaping electoral outcomes nationwide, potentially overshadowing substantive policy debates with manufactured ideological panic.
