Another country weighs in on the American Presidential elections. Pro-government Turks perceive Trump as more friendly towards Turkish ambitions, while Clinton is suspected of being a Gulenist – Fethullah Gulen, currently based in Pennsylvania, stands accused of coordinating the recent failed coup attempt. So reports Riada Ašimović Akyol in AL Monitor:
… the pro-government media seems to be a bit more sympathetic toward Donald Trump, while anti-government media is siding with Hillary Clinton. This may sound quite surprising, for Turkey’s pro-government media is also pro-Islamic, and Trump is known for this unfriendly tone toward Muslims. But for Turks, their own political drama is more important than everything else. The July 15 attempted military coup was a breaking point in a myriad of ways. Clinton’s and Trump’s reactions to this traumatic event and Fethullah Gulen’s possible extradition shaped public opinion in Turkey. That’s when things took a clear turn, as the pro-government media, which previously criticized Trump for his “banning Muslims” stances, shifted toward him thanks to his clear support for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Things got much more complicated for Clinton, who was seen as a supporter of the Gulen movement, which the government blames for the attempted coup.
Why is Clinton disliked?
[Mahmut] Ovur also elaborated on all the arguments that are common among government supporters who hold grudges against Clinton. He described Clinton as a “woman representative” of familiar American foreign policy, one that aims for creation of microstates and supports “controlled chaos politics” in important regions in the world. Ovur acknowledged Trump’s exclusivist or even racist narratives, but passed over them while praising Trump’s promises of taking into account existing states and practicing politics that prioritizes stability. Kayahan Uygur from Gunes newspaper shared very similar views, adding that Trump’s racism is exaggerated, and he is not scared of Islam. Even then, continued Uygur, Clinton — who is “war-instigating and in pursuit of tension” — is not less racist than Trump, considering her political record and President Barack Obama’s well-known foreign policy. Furthermore, the widespread belief among the conservative camp that the CIA took part in the coup gained major sympathy from Justice and Development Party (AKP) followers. Thus, finishes Uygur, “If Trump is better for our country, we cannot stay impartial.”
It’s not unexpected that people and government will follow their perceived interests, and here we see that even a perceived hostility in a candidate towards their religion will not deter those who believe they have solid, tangible evidence of friendliness to the country in one candidate, and hostility in another.
