Trump’s own campaign explicitly invoked John Wayne as the ideal

Evidence

Standing in front of a fake desert background and a wax statue of the gun-toting Wayne at the John Wayne Museum in Winterset, Iowa, Trump intoned: “When you think about it, John Wayne represented strength, he represented power, he represented what the people are looking [for] today because we have exactly the opposite of John Wayne right now in this country.” — Kristin Kobes Du Mez, Jesus and John Wayne, 583

Categorization

• CANDY: Trump endorsing at the John Wayne Museum with a wax statue of the gun-toting Wayne is a striking, nearly satirical image that carries the whole thesis in one scene.