AFTER one of my recent interviews, during the off-the-record, off-camera chit-chat with my guest, when the topic turned (as it does in almost every conversation I have here, whether I want it to or not) to the current chaos in the US, he made the comment, “I like Trump, and I think we [the country] can work with him, because he’s a businessman.”
That sort of statement is the kind of thing that makes me facepalm so hard my hand comes out the back of my head. This is a great guy; I like him. He’s very well-connected, and offers good insights on Philippine politics and business, and is an especially good source of expertise on all aspects of Filipino-Chinese relations. He writes a couple of columns; one in English for one of our competitor newspapers, and one in the local language for one of the tabloids. He can legitimately be described as “an opinion leader,” especially since those tabloids have a huge circulation among the common folk.
In short, this is someone who should know better than to rest on the glib – and of course, completely erroneous – perception that Donald Jackass Trump is a “businessman.” However, this is not at all unusual among Filipinos.
Trump is popular among Filipinos – Filipino-Americans overwhelmingly voted for him in 2024 – for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, it is the result of limited information. Mainstream media in the US, and to a large extent, the international media that we pick up here normalizes Trump by not going into detail about what he says or does. For example, all of his ridiculously illegal, insane executive orders are reported at face value with absolutely no additional context. “President Trump today signed an executive order to dah dah dah...” and that’s it. And he’s signing a lot of executive orders, so for the Filipino news consumer here, the impression he or she gets is that a) this is normally how a president does things, and b) Trump is being particularly energetic with his presidenting. Most Filipinos have this weird idol complex with the US to some degree – along a spectrum stretching from “benefit of the doubt” to “full-on colonial mentality” – and so assume that whatever the US government and its leader are doing, it must be right and proper.
To be fair, not everyone thinks that way; there are some who absolutely loathe anything that has anything to do with the US, and others who, being capable of critical thinking, view things with an appropriate degree of skepticism. But all of these people constitute a very small minority of the population.
The second reason is that Filipinos are not individualists; they like to be included, and to feel like they’re part of something exclusive. My teenage daughter calls it the “pick me” attitude; I describe it as cultish. Membership in a fraternity, or some kind of club – every make and model of car sold here has an “owner’s club,” for example – or some professional society, or even an actual cult like the Iglesia Ni Cristo, Kingdom of Jesus Christ, or Jesus Is Lord megachurches, defines a person’s identity. Like it or not, MAGA attracts people like that, because it offers a personal brand one can borrow. Something for the Democrats to consider if they ever get the chance to oppose the neofascists in another election; the “we include everyone” thing just doesn’t work for some people, because if you’re just like everyone, you’re not special. Yes, I realize there’s a big irony in all of this, but most Filipinos don’t, and won’t, even if you explain it to them.
Related to that aspect of the Filipino personality is the unfortunate fact that identity prejudice is hard-wired into the culture and most people. Again, this is an irony, because in some respects the Philippines seems like an egalitarian kind of place. After all, there have been two women presidents, women are significantly well-represented in all levels of government, in business, and in the professional occupations. LGBTQI+ people are currently fighting for some expanded legal rights (such as legal marriages), but as a practical matter are cheerfully accepted without a second thought in society, and do not face impediments in jobs or business or day-to-day living.
But, just under this veneer of civility lies some deep-seated prejudices – real racism, to put it bluntly. The Filipinos treat us White people like VIPs, especially if we’re Americans (again, it’s the little brother complex). Chinese or Indians get a much cooler reception. Black people are treated shabbily, unless they’re one of the dozen or so naturalized American NBA washouts who play in the basketball league here. I live in a neighborhood where there are a number of African residents, here because they provide French language services in the many call centers nearby, and the treatment they receive and the way they’re spoken to in most ordinary situations is shameful. I swear, one of these days I’m going to slap the rude little bitch behind the counter at the 7-11 for talking down her snoot at the guy from Cameroon. He has a Master’s and speaks four languages; you’re an 8th-grade dropout and have four kids from three different guys. Show some normal courtesy, you insufferable skank.
So, when it comes right down to it, the proud white supremacy of Trump and his MAGA cult has a great deal of appeal. Obviously, Filipinos aren’t white, but I believe that literally does not register with most of them who count themselves as members of the cult. For those who do realize they’re the wrong color, they seem to feel that if they are simply enthusiastic and loud enough, they’ll be accepted.
The obvious question that anyone should ask, and that I ask myself, is why should anyone care about any of this? It’s simple, really: Evil is evil, and it should not be supported by anyone, no matter how inconsequential that support may be. And in the case of the Philippines, and the Filipino-American population, it certainly is at least a little bit above inconsequential. Trump directly earns at least a couple million a year from the licensing for the Trump Tower in Makati (and let me tell you, a more hideous, garishly over-decorated building you have never seen), and his popularity has helped his top Elon Musk make inroads, with a recently opened Tesla center and a license to offer his shitty Starlink internet. The material advantages of Filipino support for Trump must be broken; turning their admiration for him into the revulsion morality demands will help to break his spirit, and contribute to ending him just a little bit faster.
