Misogyny has been central to Donald Trump’s identity, rise and political movement, but it is now central to his distemper, as Kamala Harris’s remarkable campaign rollout has frustrated and unnerved him.
Part of his brand has been that even churlishness is better than anything that even hints at girlishness.
Trump praises autocrats (male autocrats, that is), calling them “strong,” “smart” and “savvy” — he even once described Kim Jong-un as “honorable.” Surely, visions of unrestrained power dance in his head.
But when Trump talks about women who in any way challenge his power, his rhetoric drips with sexism. In recent days, he has referred to Harris as “incompetent,” “nasty” and “not smart.” Behind closed doors, he has reportedly referred to her, repeatedly, using the B-word.
Is there a nexus? Writing in 2022 for Foreign Affairs, the Harvard Kennedy School scholars Erica Chenoweth and Zoe Marks explained that the 21st century “is demonstrating that misogyny and authoritarianism are not just common comorbidities but mutually reinforcing ills.”
Authoritarian tendencies and misogyny rise together, illustrated, in Trump’s case, not only by the things he says to and about women, but also in the way his worldview seems to inform some of his policy positions. He was hoping, in part, to ride gender inequality — his efforts at dismantling reproductive rights and his co-signing of anti-trans hysteria — to a second term.
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