Brigitte Gabriel, a pro-Donald Trump pundit and founder of the anti-Muslim group Act for America, was mocked online after she questioned why Democrats are "so intimidated" by former President Donald Trump’s "masculinity."
You can see her tweet below.
\u201cWhy are Democrats so intimidated by President Trump\u2019s masculinity?\u201d— Brigitte Gabriel (@Brigitte Gabriel) 1683045419
Gabriel is not the first MAGA minion to extoll the virtues of Trump's alleged masculinity and she won't be the last.
For a considerable time, there has been a presumption that American politicians should display a particular facade—one of strength, influence and invincibility.
Recent research undertaken by Penn State academics discovered these elevated forms of masculinity could potentially elucidate the reasons behind support for Trump during the 2016 presidential election and in the lead-up to the 2020 election.
After conducting several studies, the researchers concluded individuals who uphold the concept of "hegemonic masculinity"—a culturally glorified manifestation of masculinity that stipulates men should be forceful, resilient and dominant—were more prone to voting for Trump and harboring favorable opinions about him.
Many mocked Gabriel for her post and called out Trump's history of terrible behavior.
\u201c@ACTBrigitte If you call baby hands masculine!\u201d— Brigitte Gabriel (@Brigitte Gabriel) 1683045419
\u201c@ACTBrigitte Democrats aren't intimidated by Trump. Also, being a rapist has nothing to do with masculinity. Rape is an act of violence and power. At your age, you should already know this.\u201d— Brigitte Gabriel (@Brigitte Gabriel) 1683045419
\u201c@ACTBrigitte Listen\nHis creepy talk about deliberately walking in on on young girls when they're naked\nhttps://t.co/lGfOd7L8Az\u201d— Brigitte Gabriel (@Brigitte Gabriel) 1683045419
\u201c@ACTBrigitte This is an insult to even conservative men. If you think Trump is masculine then you need to inspect the kool aid you\u2019ve been drinking.\u201d— Brigitte Gabriel (@Brigitte Gabriel) 1683045419
\u201c@ACTBrigitte Please, no one is scared of a pathetic orange man. We are laughing at you. \n\nRemember, we are not the ones acting like he served when he never served. That is stolen valor and disrespectful to our military members.\u201d— Brigitte Gabriel (@Brigitte Gabriel) 1683045419
\u201c@ACTBrigitte Lady, what are you smoking? He's a man child crying about how mean they are to him. He insults everyone who is a threat to him or doesn't obey him. Nothing masculine about him.\u201d— Brigitte Gabriel (@Brigitte Gabriel) 1683045419
\u201c@ACTBrigitte ROLMAO, only someone that really thought that not true, would tweet that\u201d— Brigitte Gabriel (@Brigitte Gabriel) 1683045419
\u201c@ACTBrigitte Say what? Trump is a whiner. The biggest whiner in American politics. There is nothing masculine about a whiner.\u201d— Brigitte Gabriel (@Brigitte Gabriel) 1683045419
Republicans have a record of devoting significant time to what they perceive as a calculated nationwide effort to attack masculinity.
In April 2022, then-Fox News personality Tucker Carlson released the trailer for The End of Men, a film which starts off warning viewers about dropping testosterone levels, includes footage of shirtless White men wrestling, doing push-ups, chopping wood, firing guns and even lying naked while getting their groin tanned.
The content of the trailer for The End of Men is particularly odd given Carlson's long record of homophobic commentary, which has received more coverage in recent months due to his repeated attacks against Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, whom he has mocked for taking paternity leave and "trying to figure out how to breastfeed."
But the notion that masculinity is being attacked—namely by the left-wing—is a popular one among Republicans like Missouri Senator Josh Hawley, who last year accused "the Left" of hurting "the future of the American man" and went on to claim the "deconstruction of America begins with and depends on the deconstruction of American men."
