Trump Took Another Terrifying Step Toward Authoritarianism at His Rally in Pennsylvania

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

President Donald Trump traveled to Pennsylvania on Monday to stand in front of Air Force One and speak to a fired-up crowd of supporters. Some of his time onstage was spent hammering 2020 election talking points, like immigration (“We don’t want people coming up here! Our country is full!”); the rest was spent rambling about whatever happened to cross his mind. The president is expected to officially launch his reelection campaign next month, for instance, and he’s been wondering about a new slogan. “Do we want Keep America Great or Make America Great Again?” he said before asking the audience to judge each option with applause. Keep America Great won. Trump agreed: “I like it because we’ll sell many, many more hats that way.”

Trump’s rallies are also where some of the president’s most dangerous impulses get fleshed out into the open, like earlier this month in Panama City Beach, Florida, when he joked about shooting migrants at the border. His appearance at the Williamsport Regional Airport on Monday was no exception, providing the latest, terrifying look into the president’s tendency toward authoritarianism, which is becoming less of a tendency and more of an full-throated embrace as he continues to bend the government to his will.

One of the hallmarks of authoritarianism is jailing one’s political enemies, an idea to which Trump is no stranger. He’s called for an investigation into Hillary Clinton for years now — especially at rallies, where he knows he can get the crowd lathered into a “Lock Her Up!” frenzy — but actually doing so seemed implausible, like something that couldn’t actually happen in America. This is no longer the case.

After Trump accused Democrats and the FBI of treason Monday night, he stepped away from the podium to bask in a “Lock Them Up!” chant. When he returned to the microphone, he reminded his supporters that Attorney General William Barr is in his pocket, and that the new, compliant head of the Justice Department is going to “give it a very fair look” to jailing of those involved in the Russia investigation for treason.

Link to tweet

?s=20

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/trump-rally-pennsylvania-authoritarianism-837999/

[no_hypocrisy]

1. At this stage, Trump could tell his rally-goers that he's just disowned his son for disloyalty,

and they'd chant, "Lock him up! Lock him up!"

It's the 1984 Two Minute Hate, but a lot longer and more boring.