The Independent
· collected 2026-09-21 · by Michelle Price and Will Weissert
President Donald Trump has repeatedly identified communism as the most significant threat facing the United States.
asserted
Trump → identify → States
Only months ago, citing grave concerns, he delivered a rare primetime address to accuse China of "sinister election meddling" in the 2020 election while continuing his years-long effort to challenge the outcome of that vote.
asserted
he → cite → vote
Yet even as he seeks to portray Democrats as communists ahead of November’s midterm elections, the president is welcoming Chinese President Xi Jinping—the leader of the world’s most powerful communist country—for an official state visit this week.
asserted
president → seek → visit
The state visit comes as the president has increasingly directed his administration to take large stakes in private companies to stimulate the economy, a move some Republicans decry as corporate socialism.
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Republicans → come → socialism
The contradictions between Trump’s rhetoric and his administration's actions risk blurring Republican attack lines against Democrats.
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contradictions → risk → Democrats
"I do think that we’re not offering a clear contrast," said Marc Short, who served as chief of staff to former Vice President Mike Pence and worked in Trump’s White House during his first term.
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who → think → term
As Trump cozies up to China’s communist leader, he’s trying to convince voters that it’s the Democrats who are soft on socialism
During the recent Republican midterm convention in Dallas, the president repeatedly branded Democrats as communists, declaring, "It’s going to be a communist country if they win."
asserted
they → cozie → communists
He added: "In state after state, the Democrat establishment has been overthrown and replaced by crazed lunatics and radicals," before asserting, "America has beaten communism before, and we will beat it again."
Those comments referred to candidates aligned with democratic socialists who won Democratic primaries in Michigan, Colorado, New York, Florida, and Pennsylvania.
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who → add → Michigan
Trump and other Republicans argue these primary results show the party has grown too extreme, though they frequently exaggerate political realities.
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they → argue → realities
The aggressive framing offers a way to shift the political narrative amidst several factors dampening the popularity of Trump and his party ahead of Election Day.
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framing → offer → Day
These include an increasingly unpopular war in Iran, persistent inflation, and the president's approval ratings falling near historic lows.
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ratings → include → lows
Under Trump, the government has been aggressive in taking stakes in private businesses
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government → take → businesses
At the same time, the White House has secured agreements granting the federal government equity stakes in more than 30 private companies, including chipmaker Intel, nuclear energy producer Westinghouse, and various metals and elemental firms.
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House → secure → Intel
The administration has disregarded criticism that this approach aligns more closely with centrally planned economies than traditional capitalist principles.
"If socialism is government owning the means of production, wouldn’t the government owning part of Intel be a step toward socialism?"
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owning → disregard → socialism
Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican and frequent Trump antagonist, posted on X.
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Paul → post → X.
During a recent House committee hearing, Connecticut Democratic Rep. Jim Himes told Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, "I can think of no administration in the last 50 years that is quite as communist as the Trump administration."
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that → tell → administration
The president maintains that more government equity deals are forthcoming.
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deals → maintain → ?
"I will make deals like that for our Country all day long," he posted online.
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I → make → Country
The White House did not respond to questions regarding whether it identified any discrepancy between Trump criticizing Democrats as communists while expressing warm feelings toward Xi and having the government acquire substantial stakes in private firms.
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government → respond → firms
Short, who currently serves as chairman of the conservative advocacy group Advancing American Freedom, said he believes Republicans raise "very legitimate attack lines" by framing Democrats as moving too far left.
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Republicans → serve → Democrats
However, he warned that the administration risks "picking winners and losers in the economy" through its corporate stakes, as well as with Trump’s proposal to distribute $5,000 to every adult American if the GOP retains control of Congress after November, alongside his call for price controls on items such as pharmaceuticals.
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GOP → warn → pharmaceuticals
"I think those policies, you know, lead to enormous, enormous intervention from the government into the economy," Short said, though he emphasized that he does not believe the policies turn the U.S. into a socialist economy like China.
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policies → think → China
Trump rushed to finish White House helipad in time for Xi
Even while criticizing Democrats for cozying up to communists, Trump has frequently boasted about his close relationship with China's leader, his primary global rival.
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Trump → rush → leader
Following a trip to Beijing in May, the president spoke effusively about having "an amazing time."
uncertain
president → follow → time
He has also highlighted building a helicopter landing pad that he called a "work of art" on the south lawn of the White House to impress Xi, while expressing regret that a new White House ballroom would not be finished in time for the state visit.
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ballroom → highlight → visit
"I can tell you this: It’s too bad we don’t have the ballroom open," Trump said Friday.
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Trump → tell → this
He also recalled visiting the Great Hall of the People while in China, suggesting the new White House ballroom could become the "Great Hall of the United States."
uncertain
ballroom → recall → States
Trump’s admiration for Xi reflects his broader fascination with strongmen, according to Marc Selverstone, director of presidential studies at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center of Public Affairs.
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admiration → reflect → Affairs
Trump has also spoken warmly about his relationships with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Hungarian leader Viktor Orbán, and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un.
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Trump → speak → Putin
"His interest in strongmen who are communist and strongmen who are not communists," Selverstone said.
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Selverstone → say → strongmen
"That’s constant, and playing to them is not unfamiliar to Trump."
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playing → ’ → Trump
Trump railed against Barack Obama’s Xi summit in 2015
Summits during an election season often feature a divide between high-stakes diplomacy and domestic political rhetoric.
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Summits → rail → diplomacy
In 2015, while running for president, Trump criticized then-President Barack Obama for hosting Xi at the White House with full state honors.
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Trump → run → honors
"Just take them to McDonald’s and go back to the negotiating table," Trump told a crowd at a rally in South Carolina.
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Trump → take → Carolina
He later conceded on Fox News Channel that Xi might be entitled to "probably a double-size Big Mac."
uncertain
Xi → concede → Mac
But that didn’t last
However, after winning the presidency, Trump’s tone shifted.
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tone → last → presidency
By 2018, during a GOP fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago, he marveled at Xi’s power within communist China, saying, "He’s now president for life."
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He → marvel → life
Trump temporarily appeared to set aside his soft spot for Xi during his July national address, when he announced the declassification of documents that he claimed revealed Chinese interference in U.S. elections.
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he → appear → elections
"Our elections were left vulnerable to being rigged and stolen," Trump stated, though he avoided direct criticism of Xi or calls for sanctions against Beijing.
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he → leave → Beijing
The released documents provided little new evidence and did not validate Trump’s claims.
uncertain
documents → release → claims
…and 6 more, not listed.
The Aporia
