A billboard set up for Donald Trump’s visit to India this week read: “World’s oldest democracy meets world’s largest democracy.” In the meetings between Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, however, democracy was hardly on the agenda. The two had other priorities: mutual self-congratulation, multibillion-dollar arms deals, tacit approval of anti-Muslim violence, and Bollywood-style spectacle. The centerpiece of Trump’s trip was a much-hyped event dubbed “Namaste Trump” at a massive cricket stadium in Modi’s home state of Gujarat.

Modi’s bonhomie with US presidents predates Trump. Obama also cozied up to India’s leader, similarly touting the countries’ supposedly shared democratic values. Obama was happy to look the other way regarding Modi’s alleged complicity in anti-Muslim riots; for the Obama-Trump dialogue, free trade was the only freedom that counted.

But the Trump-Modi relationship brings the lovefest of US-India leadership to a new high. No longer just a neoliberal alliance, Trump and Modi have cemented a bond over machismo-infused right-wing nationalism. The ideological affinity was evident at the “Howdy, Modi” rally in Texas last year, which served as a mirror image of the Gujarat event, and which saw Trump receive his biggest applause lines when condemning “radical Islamic terror.” Trump replayed his greatest hits at the recent Gujarat event, again getting the loudest cheers in response to his tough-on-terror posturing.