New Theme of 2016 Race: the 'Alt-Right'

Clinton links Trump to 'racist' movement, and he denies
By Newser Editors,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 26, 2016 11:05 AM CDT
New Theme of 2016 Race: the 'Alt-Right'
Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Manchester, N.H., Thursday, Aug. 25, 2016.   (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Suddenly, "alt-right" is the political phrase of the moment. Hillary Clinton on Thursday called out Donald Trump for being linked to what she calls a racist, "paranoid fringe" movement, while Trump denied even knowing what the phrase means. Coverage:

  • What Clinton said, per Gothamist: "These are race-baiting ideas, anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant ideas, anti-woman—all key tenets making up an emerging racist ideology known as the ‘alt-right.’... The names may have changed. Racists now call themselves 'racialists.' White supremacists now call themselves 'white nationalists.' The paranoid fringe now calls itself 'alt-right.' But the hate burns just as bright."
  • What Trump said, per the Hill, on CNN: "Nobody even knows what it is, and she didn't know what it was. There's no alt-right or alt-left. All that I'm embracing is common sense."
  • Trump campaign CEO Steve Bannon, formerly of Breitbart Media, told Mother Jones last week that Breitbart is the "platform for the alt-right." Read the interview here. (Asked about it on CNN, Trump responded, "I don't know what Steve said. I can only speak for myself.")

  • CNN's Brian Stelter has an explainer video on the movement here.
  • The Washington Post's Dave Weigel has a primer here.
  • At Breitbart, editor Milo Yiannopoulos says Clinton herself is responsible for the rise of the alt-right. Earlier this year, he wrote "An Establishment Conservative's Guide to the Alt-Right." Read it here.
  • A USA Today columnist offers a definition: "It’s an online movement of white people—young white guys, mostly—including white supremacists, nationalists, nativists and plain ol’ racists. They’re anxious. They’re afraid. They worry whites are losing power and influence in America, and so they generally oppose immigration and multiculturalism."
  • This video blogger and alt-right supporter says the movement is "about us having a home, a place where we can be with people like ourselves."
  • When Clinton called out the alt-right movement, the alt-right loved it. See tweets rounded up by Slate.
(More Hillary Clinton 2016 stories.)

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