Putin loves Trumpian/Republican Nationalism because it's ultimately *Impotent Nationalism*
Nationalism is normally about expanding one's borders and we have some opportunities to do just that...
Make Puerto Rico or Guam states?
NO! CAN'T HAVE THAT!
They might vote Democratic.
Nationalism is normally about creating a common identity on one's national identity and yet to the Trumpian nationalist, it's sort of solipsist...
I am the American, the 'other' isn't.
Instead of seeing the immigrant American or the Muslim American embrace American customs, engage in American ideas and systems as something good, it's terrifying.
Case in point: Ilhan Omar. She should be an inspiration to all Americans and I am sure to the vast majority of Americans, she is just that. Once a refugee who is a Muslim American and ran on the support of groups like GLBTQ Americans to become a United States Representative... to me, that is pure 100% American spirit right there, but to Trumpian nationalists like John Guandolo and E.W. Jackson, it's something to fear, it's the conspiracy, the secret jihad.
Nationalism, even with it's worst varieties and it's something I don't endorse generally seems to promote some sort of shared political good for everyone of that nation... with Trumpian/Republican Nationalism, the only shared political good we get are the ideas that if you have enough money, you can be above the law... that if you don't like something, just call it fake news... greed is good... sell out the government to the highest bidder. We don't all get the goods if we don't have the money, but we do get the illusion of the goods.
It's Impotent Nationalism. We've got nationalists who instead of expanding our borders are obsessed with keeping them the way they are. These same nationalists see Americans who don't look, worship, love, or vote the same as them not as kin, but as the enemy. These same nationalists have created a system where all people of the nation are supposed to get the political goods, but some will get it first and a lot more than others.
I don't think it's a sustainable nationalism, but there's one more thing about these impotent nationalists and we all know what it is... they will go down with their Impotent Nationalism a thousand times before they agree with some liberal, some 'globalist' like me.
