Beauty Is the New Bigotry – The American Spectator | USA News and PoliticsThe American Spectator

Beauty itself is now a sign of political extremism, or that’s what the bright sparks over at Vox would have us believe. According to Sean Collins, a lead editor at the site, “MAGA glam” — bold brows, gym-toned bodies, full lips, tight dresses — is not just an aesthetic. No, it’s a pernicious political signal tied to Trump-era policies.

It’s an utterly ridiculous narrative, entirely detached from objective reality.

First, the idea that Trumpism uniquely “weaponizes” aesthetics is laughable. Politicians have always cultivated their image, and history is overflowing with examples. JFK’s tanned youthfulness was no accident; it was a deliberate contrast to Nixon’s pale, sweating figure on television. Ronald Reagan, the former actor, carefully maintained a polished and commanding image that reassured voters of his strength.

Michelle Obama’s wardrobe was so political that it launched entire industries of coverage, with praise lavished on her every outfit as a form of soft diplomacy. Barack Obama’s sharp suits and effortless cool were part of a deliberate branding campaign that made him feel younger, slicker, and more in touch than his opponents. Yet, no one suggested that Michelle Obama’s designer dresses were signs of creeping fascism.

When the Left packages its candidates, it’s hailed as strategy and sophistication. When the Right does it, it’s suddenly a threat to democracy. The double standard is infuriating. Image-making isn’t a Trumpian invention; it’s baked into the DNA of modern politics. It always has been. (RELATED: The Table of Cruel Non-Binaries: Media Attack on MAGA Influencers at Inauguration Backfires)

Second, linking plastic surgery, carefully crafted eyebrows, and gym-toned physiques to political extremism is deeply dishonest. It reduces serious political movements to cosmetic stereotypes, as if heavy eyeliner or a fitted dress reveals a person’s stance on immigration or free speech.

By this logic, Hollywood should be seen as the most dangerous fascist regime in history. After all, the entertainment industry, intimately associated with left-leaning politics, has long championed plastic surgery, relentless body sculpting, and manufactured beauty standards. But Vox articles warning that Botoxed actors are a threat to the citizens of America are very difficult to come by.

Worse, this line of attack sends a corrosive message: that health, beauty, and self-improvement are somehow sinister if they appear on the “wrong” side of the political aisle.

It’s not real analysis. It’s aesthetic profiling masquerading as critique, and it deserves to be called out for what it is. Essentially, cultural bigotry against anyone who refuses to conform to a degraded vision of modern-day America.

More importantly, the Left has no moral high ground when it comes to beauty. That’s because it has spent the last decade or more actively dismantling it. The same people who once defended glamour and elegance now perform linguistic gymnastics when asked to define what a woman is.

In recent times, they have glorified obesity as “empowerment” and turned figures like Lizzo into icons not for their talent but for their defiant celebration of unhealthy lifestyles. To be clear, this is not an attack on obese individuals; it’s an indictment of a culture that treats preventable health issues as virtues, and frames any call for discipline or self-care as “fatphobia.” Encouraging self-respect is one thing; glorifying conditions that lead to heart disease, diabetes, and early death is another.

Meanwhile, traditional femininity — beauty, poise, grace — is framed as oppressive and outdated. Sloppiness is elevated as authenticity, and beauty itself is treated with suspicion unless it serves a progressive narrative. In this climate, the Right should actively own “MAGA glam.”

It isn’t just an aesthetic choice. It’s an act of defiance, a rejection of the new cultural order that demands mediocrity and blind obedience in place of aspiration and authenticity. At its core, “MAGA glam” is a cultural middle finger, a refusal to apologize for strength, health, discipline, and an admirable form of self-presentation.

It says that a proper diet, physical fitness, and taking pride in one’s appearance are not crimes.

It argues that femininity (and masculinity) is not an outdated concept to be discarded, but rather a virtue to be respected, upheld, and passionately defended. And that, far more than Botox, brows, or bicep curls, is what the Left truly cannot forgive.

Finally, the idea that “MAGA glam,” as alluded to in the Vox piece, distracts from questionable policies isn’t some Trump-era invention. It’s basic politics. For decades, media theatrics have been used to dress up hardline policies in a more palatable light. The aforementioned Barack Obama sold drone strikes, mass surveillance, and foreign interventions behind speeches about hope and unity. The American people were greeted with a handsome, smiling face that masked the ruthless expansion of executive power.

As prime minister of Canada, Instagram-loving Justin Trudeau crushed civil liberties and froze the bank accounts of trucker protestors, all while posing as the poster boy for progressive compassion.

Emmanuel Macron, Europe’s golden child, unleashed police crackdowns in Paris even as he graced the covers of glossy magazines as the face of “modern leadership.” Yet no major outlet agonized over how “Obama chic” or “Trudeau glam” disguised brutality. No one suggested their sharp suits and sparkly white teeth were a threat to democracy. But when a woman in Trump’s orbit wears a fitted dress, shows off toned arms, or applies bold makeup, it’s treated like a national scandal.

The hypocrisy is overwhelming. Beauty doesn’t mask brutality any more on the Right than it does on the Left. The only difference is who the media is determined to protect, and who they are desperate to destroy.

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