When President Trump was reelected in 2024, jokes abounded about how we could once again say, “Merry Christmas,” as well as many other words that once could have gotten you canceled. There was some truth behind all the quips and memes. Trump’s election signaled a rejection of political correctness and other woke excesses of the left. For a brief time, Americans felt free to say what they thought. But as the saying goes, “You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain.”
The rise of the populist right has brought passion, new voters, and a fighting spirit that cannot be dismissed. Yet alongside this energy, a new political correctness has emerged on the right that demands political conformity and punishes dissent with the same ferocity that defined progressive cancel culture. Traditional conservatives who once felt liberated by Trump now find themselves whispering in the halls of power. The left’s political correctness was based on progressive ideology. The right’s political correctness is not about ideology but perceived loyalty to the president.
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