I've Resisted Calling Trump a Fascist. Not Anymore.

[Nevilledog]

https://www.thedailybeast.com/ive-resisted-calling-trump-a-fascist-but-after-he-openly-endorsed-violence-not-anymore

Many people have used the word “fascist” to describe Donald Trump over the past few years. I was not one of them—until Monday night, when Trump openly defended and endorsed violence by his supporters.

First, Trump shockingly defended his 17-year-old supporter Kyle Rittenhouse, who drove across state lines into Wisconsin where he illegally carried a weapon in the streets of Kenosha and then shot and killed two people. (Criminal charges filed against Rittenhouse include first-degree intentional homicide and illegal possession of a deadly weapon.)

Then Trump backed his supporters who on Saturday descended in a caravan of cars on Portland, Oregon, where they were seen shooting projectiles such as paintballs and pepper spray at people in the street. Trump defended this criminal conduct as a “peaceful protest,” arguing that “paint is not bullets.” In reality, shooting people with paintballs is a crime—we all know that. It could blind a person or worse. Yet Trump defends it because the people engaged in this violence were on Team Trump.

We have now entered a new reality in America where Trump, like fascists before, is embracing violence to remain in power. Let’s be clear about what fascism is. As Madeleine Albright explained while discussing her 2018 book, Fascism: A Warning, “Fascism is not an ideology; it’s a process for taking and holding power.” She added that “what differentiates fascism from other ideological movements is the use of violence and anger to achieve political ends.” Hammering that point home, Albright back in early 2019 used a line that sums up Trump today: “Fascism involves the endorsement and use of violence to achieve political goals and stay in power.”

*snip*

[marybourg]

1. I knew tRump from NY. When an acquaintance asked what I

thought of him when he won the publican nomination, I told her “Insane, traitorous fascist”.

[BamaRefugee]

2. Same here. As a Manhattanite in the 70s and 80s I had to endure his bullshit every day.