‘My enemy’s enemy is my friend,’ so the ancient proverb goes. This was certainly true in the run-up to the 2024 US presidential election, when libertarians, Zionists, America-first absolutists and fed-up ‘anti-woke’ Democrats saw it as their mission to win Trump four more years. Now, one year on from their historic victory, as the MAGA alliance begins to fall apart, it would seem the real battle has begun: the battle to define the future of the American right.
The significance of this breakdown occurring now, not only on the anniversary of the election but also two months since the tragic assassination of Charlie Kirk, cannot be overstated. As a clear leader and potential future presidential candidate, Kirk’s death both intensified the bitterness felt towards those on the left and left a void between the various coalition parties he was in many ways holding together. The result has been the latest and most dramatic culmination of infighting among conservatives, with both old and new players competing to dictate the right’s future.
