Garrett stressed that people reject crude hatred. “That’s not how you win a presidential election.” He thinks that Donald Trump will have to backtrack in the long run, “because his message is clearly characterized by hatred.” Referring to the debate regarding tightening gun laws, the Professor of American Studies at the University of Leipzig said: “To be honest, I’m not expecting anything big.” The country has been wrestling with the issue for 30 years.
The interview in full:
Peter Kapern: Was it hate for gays, or was he commissioned to spread Islamist terror in the US? Orlando, Fla., police are investigating the motives behind the man who shot 50 people dead yesterday. And the massacre is now also shaping the political debate in the USA.
The American political scientist Crister Garrett on the phone in Leipzig. Good morning Mr Garrett.
Crister Garrett: Good morning, Mr. Kapern.
capers: Mr. Garrett, what are you hearing from your relatives and friends in the United States? How are they reacting to the events in Orlando? Is this just another bloody deed we’ve seen so many of the last few months and years, or is this massacre out of the ordinary?
Garrett: Any massacre in that sense is very special and terrifying and draws the full attention of the nation to that place, be it San Bernardino or this morning Orlando in Florida on the east coast. The extent is of course historical. Never before has such a bloody deed been experienced in the USA as far as gun violence is concerned. And of course then speculation regarding motives and religion and insecurity. Of course, all of this has its own unique quality.
“The country has been struggling with itself on this issue for more than 30 years”
capers: Such bloody deeds are only possible when perpetrators get hold of the weapons that can cause such devastating damage. We have already spoken regarding the American gun laws here on Deutschlandfunk during various murders and mass murders, and you have repeatedly explained to us that the Americans are not prepared to make any substantial changes. Do you think that still applies following the Orlando massacre?
Garrett: We’ll have to wait and see. Of course we have seen children being shot, young people, on several occasions, be it in the Northeast US, in the US West, in the South and now in the East once more. Then there are the testimonies of President Obama and others. That moves, but it does not shape significantly. That’s the experience so far. Now of course we have to wait.
Overall, a majority of the population, if we will, is in favor of tightening gun laws, but as is so often the case with such laws, it depends on the details and on the majorities in Congress and in the states. Each state has its own laws on this. In Florida we are currently learning what laws Florida has on this. Apparently it wasn’t that difficult for this man to get his hands on machine guns and handguns. But this isn’t unique to Florida, so we’ll see what’s actually changing. To be honest, I’m not expecting anything big. The country has been struggling with itself on this issue for more than 30 years.
“Trump must find a new center for himself”
capers: Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, has called on both President Barack Obama and his presidential competitor, Hillary Clinton, to resign because they did not explicitly speak of Islamist terrorism in connection with the Orlando attack. How do you rate that?
Garrett: Of course, Donald Trump is now trying to consolidate his supporters, and responsibility in the sense of being careful with the facts doesn’t play much of a role for Donald Trump. We experience that once more and once more. He tweeted very quickly, he feels validated, and of course that message doesn’t resonate with Hillary supporters, or even with independent voters, but it does resonate with his constituency. They feel validated.
That was the first purpose and then of course he tries to draw attention to himself as far as media moves go. In this sense, too, it is successful. Moderate, balanced messages from the President or from Hillary Clinton have stature and are fair, but they have less resonance in the media, and it is precisely these issues that we need to be able to deal with and I think Donald Trump will backtrack here in the long run. He has to, too, because his message is clearly characterized by hate, and in the party, in his own party, that makes for a very, very explosive issue. In order to win, he must somehow find a new center for himself.
Improbable election victory with clumsy hate slogans
capers: That means you don’t assume that the hard course that Donald Trump took in the first hours following the Orlando massacre will bring him new support?
Garrett: Of course it can be. Some voters, nobody can rule that out. But his message really is not to allow Muslims into the country, and that’s a message that doesn’t sit well with a very clear majority of voters when it comes to religious freedom. There’s just a rejection of hate, crude brutal hate if you will. That’s not how you win a presidential election, and if he continues on that course, he’ll once once more consolidate his following, maybe gain more, but at the same time – that’s the whole math – he’ll repel a lot of people. That is the great danger for him, let alone for the Republican Party.
capers: … says the political scientist Crister Garrett. Mr. Garrett, thank you for the interview, thank you for your time. I wish you a good day.
Garrett: You’re welcome. You too!
capers: Speak to you soon!
Statements made by our interlocutors reflect their own views. Deutschlandfunk does not adopt the statements of its interlocutors in interviews and discussions as its own.
