Fantastic insight! You obviously know more about the background and similar as well as competing cultural influences. I saw him as someone who knows right from wrong and considers it his duty to do something about it, but being a hyperbolic mirror of patriotism starting to go wrong is his way to help, to give them a chance to finally see the problem.

Now I realise that this might be more like my own personal fan theory.

That was the page I considered posting initially

Some surveys seem to support that this direction could have worked. As a German, I supported the course of the Democrats to go with a presidential candidate and policies that democratic conservatives could get behind. About half of the voters in the US want less democracy, more totalitarianism. For a chance to stop Trump, it seemed reasonable just get all supporters of freedom and democracy behind a single candidate. But maybe I was wrong.

I have my doubts that there will be an election in 2028.

Reminds me of this character in Watchmen. Calls himself the Comedian, but never makes “jokes” in a classical sense. He is cruel, overly patriotic, violent against protesters, seems to enjoy massacres in Vietnam. Only one other person understands that he is actually against these things and tries to show them this hyperbolic mirror of their own totalitarian views. But everybody else doesn’t understand it, they take it face value and admire his “patriotism”. He never breaks role until the last moment (or even then just in the movie?).