My latest: one year after they helped storm the Capitol, Nick Fuentes and the America First/groyper movement continue to move their brand of white nationalism within the America First wing of the GOP, casting a long shadow over the post-Trump MAGA movement politicalresearch.org/2022/01/05/we-…
Since 2019, the groypers looked for ways to ditch the toxic 'alt-right' label & rebrand themselves as young, energetic conservatives. With Stop the Steal, they found a fresh opening. Their frontline mobilization caught the attention of GOP Rep Gosar, who soon endorsed them 
In 2021, Fuentes & AF attracted the support of national & local Republican officials, solidified their countercultural force among Gen Z conservative activists, held regular in-person conferences, meetups & rallies, & fortified movement infrastructure in face of deplatforming.
By eagerly branding himself as an embattled "free speech martyr" amidst widespread conservative fearmongering over 'Big Tech Censorship' & post-J6 'regime persecution', Fuentes has amassed political capital w/in a Right which opts not to purge but to protect & expand its ranks.
The unprecedented lack of pushback after GOP electeds embraced Fuentes signals that White nationalists & their ideas are no longer pariahs w/in conservatism. Rising leaders are quietly, sometimes openly adopting Fuentes' talking points & groyper aesthetics politicalresearch.org/2021/07/20/for…
Today, Fuentes & AF are strategically positioned on the cutting edge of growing illiberal, ultranationalist currents that continue to shape the U.S. Right. If these currents continue to gain influence in 2022, the groyper brand could move further into big-tent conservatism
Regardless, the ideas they carry with them have already arrived. Right-wing leaders are increasingly voicing Great Replacement theory, warning against "anti-white hatred" & tapping the White identity politics at the heart of White nationalism mediamatters.org/tucker-carlson…
As the landscape changes & Fuentes & AF continue to exert quiet yet perceptible influence upon conservatism's far-right flank, established 'counter-extremism' strategies like deplatforming & naming & shaming may offer diminishing returns.
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