Bimgo: The best relatable words to describe Trump yet. Mob boss. It lexplains his appeal and danger.

Former federal prosecutor Barbara McQuade came up with a word description of Trump that avoids some of the baggage of other words when she was discussing her new book MSNOW this morning: Mob Boss...I have used a mob boss myself as an analogy to what a fascist dictator is like, but perhaps it is time to just call him what he is: a mob boss. https://michigan.law.umich.edu/news/5qs-mcquades-new-book-details-fix-democracy-us.          Mcquade recogizes that defying the rule of law harms us even though it appeals to some.  Bravo Mcquade. You hit the nail on the head, including that it takes away the rule of the people called democracy.  We the people lose the ability to govern ourselves. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ihiH-SSY-vA

Here'i iss my case to brand him with those two words.Given Trump's lifelong modus operandi is mob boss-like, which I too have noted.  

 Calling Trump a fascist just raises the hackles. ;It is too close to  Hitler. and Auschwitz. (Trump is not: his concentration camps full of those of Hispanics do not have ovens.as the end game. On the other hand, he does have his paramilitary ICE and J6 militia thugs he can activate as he has done it. But if you dare cross him, he will get back at you in devastating ways, filing frivolous, unproven criminal charges or primaring you. Fear of his awful power on steroids is his chief weapon. He threatens and makes examples of his targets. to keep his supporters in line.  

Trump feels unchained from the rule of law since he believes he has legal immunity from criminal acts. (Mob bosses spend a lifetime figuring out how to avoid prosecution for criminal acts they know they are committing. The Supreme Court gave Trump a gift: a get-out-of-jail-free pass for a criminal act. The flood of examples of corruption flaunted and in the open, no bid contract his awarded to his cronies, and changes in regulatory laws including IRS scrutiny or rules governing crypto,,  padding his personal pockets in crypto and gifts from foreign powers, his schemes that benefit his kids and loyalists, and punishment meted out to those who only support him 90% not 100% percent of the time,, are like classic mob boss behavior that sticks a third finger into the rule of law.  Loyalty to him is his most treasured value of those deserving his favor and awards, the classic mob boss modus.

However, per many sources often cited in this blog, he may fit a "classic definition" of a fascist,but calling him that is a political unncessary falme thrower . Calling him an autocrat or a wannabe autocrat seems a bit too academic, but still could include the other hackle-raising word "dictator".  Mob boss avoids all of that, but it fits, per McQuade, with a background in prosecution of mob cases.  She makes her case in her book, just released today, which includes guidance on how to stop someone governing like Trump.

While there are stacks and stacks of books and words from his former military aides that call Trump a fascist, perhaps the best text of reference is the Godfather series movies and the Sopranos...Nothing academic or hackle raising there, but for some, a mob boss is a hero figure and may even explain his cult-like followers who excuse his every deed and defiance of laws.

Gen.Milley and Gen.Kelly aren't kidding " Trump's a fascist updated 10/25/24

 Gen. John Kelly, 4 stars, retired, and Gen. Mark Milley, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, retired. Both were quoted in the media, and Kelly had his comments on tape this week. Both agreed that Trump fit the definition of a fascist. The reaction has been varied, including "You gotta be kidding," "No kidding, those kinds of guys do not kid," "They were fired, disgruntled employees," and, unspecified, " Harris is worse.""John Kelly is "low life"and "Hitler did some good things",  replied Trump. Harris on 10/24 joined in with also calling Trump a fascist. Harris says Trump 'is a fascist' after official said he praised Adolf Hitler | AP News     A group of those also former staff for Trump in the White House signed a letter in support of Kelly's audio and reported statements. ‘This is who Donald Trump is’: Ex-Trump administration officials sign open letter backing John Kelly’s claims Both generals had up-close and first-hand experience in Trump's first term. (Milley was Trump's appointee as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, and Kelly was Trump's longest-serving chief of staff.) Both served to put the brakes on Trump's worst illegal demands and attempt to defy the law and Constitution. Milley was ordered to use the military against US citizens. He told him, "No", you can't do that because it is against the law (oh? Don't forget he's got immunity now in 2024 from prosecution for breaking the law, remember?)Milley put it in writing in a draft letter of resignation he had sworn to uphold the Constitution, not a person. Milley, quoted in Bob Woodward's book WAR: Trump, was a "fascist to the core." Kelly, on the tape released this week, said Trump "fit the definition' of a fascist," and he was motivated to come out publicly last week because of Trump's repeated statements that he would use the military against his political enemies and opponents who Trump called" the enemy from within.."

 What part of the definition of fascists did  Trumpt try to match in the past and promises he will match if re-elected. John Kelly comes out swinging against Trump, says he fits 'fascist' definition   Per Kelly:" The former general held nothing back, arguing that Trump could fit the bill of a "fascist.""Well, looking at the definition of fascism: It's a far-right authoritarian, ultranationalist political ideology and movement characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hierarchy," he told The Times". 

With Gen. Milley and Gen. John Kelly and Kamala Harris calling Trump a fascist, does that make MAGAs fascists, too? With Trump saying Hitler did some good things, does anyone care? Calling someone a fascist is no longer inflammatory? So take the Gen. Kelly test. You may be a fascist unawares. If you answer yes to what you want, look in the mirror. Kelly's definition: dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hierarchy (ie. one race or class is superior to others)

Trump fits all of them, and which part does Harris match (hint:0)?  The enabling document: Project 2025Once again, the definition of a fascist and is the kind of a country we will become if he succeeds follows.

Trump only wants yesmen to serve him and no constraints. If he wins the presidency again, neither one, Kelly or Milley, or anyone of their caliber and with loyalty to the Constitution will be around. If Trump wins the presidency again, he will also have immunity if he breaks the law, courtesy of his compliant Supreme Court ruling. If Trump wins the presidency again, he has the blueprint, a manual that shows him how to become a fascist ruler it is Project 2025 that shows the way to do it is by firing those who are not loyal to Trump and replacing them with those who will do as he orders, subverting the intent of the law, without Congress having to send him a piece of legislation to sign.

What part of the definition did  Trumpt try to match in the past and promises he will match if re-elected.? Trump fits all of them, and which part does Harris match (0)?  The enabling document: Project 2025

Bold print italics from the dictionary ( my comments in parentheses and not in bold)

 From Merriam-Webster:  

 "a movement, or regime (such as that of the Fascists) that exalts nation and often race (Extolling and preferring his own race is extremely evident and becoming more so. Examples of his devotion to white nationalists, neo Nazi's some fine  people, immigrants from Norway preferred,  disdain for "s..hole nations", immigrants brown and black with bad genes "poisoning our blood", ..and so much more. The "pride in country" part is not his as he is constantly putting down America which only he can fix.) ....... and advocates.  

 a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader ("dictator for a day," a government administered by those sworn to loyalty to the leader and not to the law or a constitution. wants generals like Hitler had). Harris pledges to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law).

 severe economic and social regimentation (replacing all appointees to cabinet and federal administrative positions with loyalists; continued opposition to a federal Row v Wade type of reproductive health care for women; ignoring and removing Constitutional civil rights protections; doing away with the Federal Reserve and Obamacare, among much more. Harris, in every instance pledging the opposite and a professional history of lifetime support)

and forcible suppression of opposition. (Trump's definition of "the enemy from within" is his political opponents such as Rep. Schiff and Nancy Pelosi. Milley and Kelly are cases in point above in opposing Trump's use of active military to put down opposition demonstrations, executing Milley, delicensing all opposition media, and prosecuting political opponents without any probable cause for wrongdoing but used as threats and harassment. Trump's use of violence, as in  January 6, and many prior years of approving of violence to suppress opposition is legendary. Harris is an experienced prosecutor sworn to uphold the rule of law and the rules and regulations governing her actions, a professional lifetime of doing it.) https://mufticforumblog.blogspot.com/2024/06/documented-history-of-trumps-call-to.html 

From the Cambridge Dictionary:

" a political system based on a very powerful leader (that one desire seems to be on every lips of a MAGA)

 state control of social and economic life (particularly of women; replacing all appointees to cabinet and federal administrative positions with loyalists to the white nationalist evangelical ideology as screened and vetted by Project 2025; continued opposition to a federal Row v Wade type of reproductive health care for women; ignoring civil rights; doing away with the Federal Reserve and Obamacare, keeping tax breaks for the very rich, among much more. Harris in every instance, pledging the opposite)

 and extreme pride in country and race. (Repeated from above that one extolling and preferring his own race is extremely evident and becoming more so.) . The "pride in the country" part is not his; he is constantly putting down America as a failing, weak nation, so only he can fix it. One of his fixes  stopping wars by appeasement of our enemies and adversaries, giving them "what the hell they want and destorying NATO and other defense alliances)  Harris, multiracial herself, is the opposite, in about every way'

 with no expression of political disagreement allowed. (Using military to put down civil demonstrations; delicensing all opposition media, as noted above).

Trump calls John Kelly a "lowlife" after Hitler praise revelations

Trump adds to his enemies list...the enemies from within..leaving no doubt what he meant in spite of JDVance's attempt to deflect and clean up. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/trump-expands-his-list-of-enemies-from-within-at-madison-square-garden-rally/ar-AA1t27fK?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=824b5f481128417b85ef7c50f8234314&ei=15

Short form based on above of a fascist:

• a movement, or regime  that exalts nation and often race 
•  a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial,or very powerful leader
• and forcible suppression of opposition use of active military to put down opposition demonstrations
• delicensing all opposition media
•  prosecuting political opponents without any probable cause
•  state control of social and economic life (particularly of women.keeping tax breaks for the very rich, 

No more pussyfooting around. Time to call Trump a " wannabe fascist dictator?"

The New York Times today made a case for calling Trump a fascist, though they still tagged him with being a wannabe "autocrat. It was front page. While  The Times itself did not call Trump a fascist, it instead presented the evidence of how he fit the definition. Trump’s Dire Words Raise New Fears About His Authoritarian Bent - The New York Times (nytimes.com) Too bad America cannot get the full article because of the paywall. Still, the probability is frightening he could get his hands on the ability to carry out his plans.  This is not bloviating by a crazy, out-of-control megalomaniac. The Heritage Foundation has the money and the pre-vetted lists of loyalists who will replace the executive branch appointees not pledging loyalty or having a history of disloyalty to Trump. They are ready to go the minute Trump takes the oath of office and to get the job done within his term. MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: How the Heritage Foundation plans to turn us into a one party autocracy There is a large mass of Americans who already buy into\, ignore, or even applaud what he promises to do if he gets into the White House again.  They tacitly or consciously approve of his breaking the rule of law to do what he promised.  FromThe Times article:" A survey released last month by the Public Religion Research Institute found that 38 percent of Americans supported having a president willing to break some rules” to “set things right” with the country. Among Republicans surveyed, 48 percent backed that view."  Once Trump is successful in implementing his plans for citizens to take back democracy as they once knew it,  it is too late. Citizens have, by then, lost the power to do it through the ballot because the ballot is also under the control of Trump and his followers. There are plenty wanting to take his place if age overtakes Trump. If you are applauding what Trump is planning, you need to look in the mirror and wonder if you, too, have earned the tag of fascist.

 The Times article includes evidence of how Trump fits the definition. But first, the definition is based upon an analysis of past and current dictators (whatever their rationalization to garner personal power) .  "Fascism is generally understood as an authoritarian, far-right system of government in which hypernationalism is a central component. It also often features a cult of personality around a strongman leader, the justification of violence or retribution against opponents, and the repeated denigration of the rule of law", said Peter Hayes, a historian who has studied the rise of fascism...".   Another export source quoted in the Times article also said such fascist dictators rose to power by catering to those who think they have been victimized. "Past fascist leaders appealed to a sense of victimhood to justify their actions, he said. “The idea is: ‘We’re entitled because we’ve been victimized. We’ve been cheated and robbed."

My comment follows: Getting really close to Trump earning the tag: "wannabe fascist dictator". The pussyfoot term in use in the polite and liberal press has been "autocrat."  Way too kind for someone who now promises to imprison his opponents and is already making his enemies list that he will use for (his) Department of Justice loyalists to indict and jail, which he adds to daily. Maybe just "dictator" will do.  On the other hand, if the bird walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it probably is a duck. Trump is quacking like a fascist, and others are walking and acting like fascists on his behalf.  Today, it is Liz Cheney.  When he threatens to imprison any general who refused to call up the active military to put down demonstrations against him abusing the insurrection act, what does that describe?  If he promises to use the FCC to shut down media news who does not support him, where have you heard that before?,   If he describes those opposing him as "vermin"n" and says that illegal immigrants will contaminate "our blood",  he took a page from the German fascism of Goebbels and Hitler? That is how fascists get citizens to go along with their persecution by making them these targets less than human or lesser than their ruling class. Empathy has no place in that society. Even better, make the lesser than your race or class to blame for your ills and deserving your hatred. and oppression. Examples of that are Jewish bankers and, now, personified by George Soros by contemporary anti-semites. For Trump, the target is the "deep state, who dared during his first term to tell him "no."  That includes Genera Milley who refused to use active military to put down domestic protest. Root it out, he says, and replace it with his loyalists.   And if you tend to excuse this as just demagoguery, bloviating, and entertaining, you are a fool because the plans are already there and being funded to replace every executive decision appointee identified as "disloyal to Trump", including more of the judiciary, and lists of the loyal are being gathered, he can do it within four years.  Won't the Civil Rights Act or the Constitutional amendments protect minorities' access to the ballot? Not if yesterday's federal judges ruled that complaints about such violations can only be brought by the Justice Department, not citizens. That one will eventually make it to the Trump-appointed Supreme Court, which already gutted the rest of the Voting Rights Act.  Violence in support of Trump is approved and justified, not just on January 6.   If there is no ruile of law, there is the rule of Trump, and that one raised alarm bells even among conservatives. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/nov/21/anti-trump-conservative-lawyers

Trump Vows to appoint special prosecutor to ‘go after’ Biden if former president wins in 2024 | The Hill

Federal court threatens to deal a death blow to the Voting Rights Act (nbcnews.com)

MAGA Calls for Liz Cheney to Be Jailed: 'Guilty of Treason' (newsweek.com)

Trump suggests Mark Milley should be executed in possible breach of pre-trial release

 conditions (yahoo.com)

Trump Attacks 'Gutless Pig' Bill Barr for Calling Indictment 'Damning' (rollingstone.com)

MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: Trump fans the flames of violence, yet calls himself the law and order president updated

Trump’s Dire Words Raise New Fears About His Authoritarian Bent - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

After Calling Foes ‘Vermin,’ Trump Campaign Warns Its Critics Will Be ‘Crushed’ - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: What Trump plans for his second term and how he will do it

 

Why I have changed my views on whether Trump is a fascist: he is

An update 7/22/20 and  revised 7/25/2020 and updated October 2020 and Nov. 2, 2020 and Nov 16,2020 and 12/12/2020

 

If Trump is a fascist, then what are his followers? The Supreme Court rejected outright a foolish suit brought by Texas to try to get the four states that were responsible mostly for putting Biden over the top, and decisively , to throw out their votes.  However, 125 GOP representatives and GOP secretaries of state signed on or supported the suit.  Using the word "fascism" is inflammatory because it brings up images of Hitler. However, whatever you call fascism or defines it, the American brand so far only has a few strutting, torch carrying, gun toting Hitler types. There are common characteristics, however, that should give us pause and think there is some reason to call the political movement supporting him is fascist like. In an op ed from the Beast, a writer hit some true notes. " Here are five essential ones, though there are others: blind loyalty to a leader who’s really more of a national father figure; belief that the leader is the state; belief that opposition to the leader is opposition to the state, and thus treason; conviction (instilled or ignited by the leader) that the source of the problems facing the good wholesome ethnic majority is some Other or collection of Others who must be ostracized if not banished; agreement that the rules and constraints of democratic order are sometimes useful and should be obeyed as long as one can obey them and win, because doing so confers a certain legitimacy, but if they have to be cast aside to hold power, then cast aside they must be. These principles animate every fascist regime in human history. They are at the heart of Trumpism, and they have drawn many more adherents than I’d have thought possible in this country." Trump Just Broke Through the Last Level of Neo-Fascism (yahoo.com)

Comments 10/29/20

It appears that Trump's job approval hovers around 44% ...consistently.  In 1958 and 1959 I trekked to war-damaged Berlin for a junior year abroad from Northwestern University. As a political science major I was curious how could such a civilized and advanced society support the rise of fascism. Germans did; they were willing.  Now seeing the kind of hold Trump has on his followers and his adoring rally attenders, I have come to the conclusion there was nothing unique about Germans though their dire post World War I and Depression economic conditions were much more extreme than in 2016 in America. The forces at work in the past 4 years are different.  The economy was good for the very rich, but patchy for others and racism reared its ugly head as Trump began his campaign riding down the escalator with show biz racist history and hatred of everything Obama, who he saw as illegitimate and foreign-born. The demographic shifts of the rise of the power of women and minorities as political leaders drove much of this and fed his tweets, rants, and rallies during his entire presidency.  His inability to deal with COVID laid bare disparities and fears of loss of power of the white male majority. My final realization in October 2020  is that I did not need to go to Germany to understand how Hitler rose.  The answer lay within my own country and in the soul of a significant number of our population. It is that dark soul that Joe Biden is battling.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/01/us/elections/trump-defends-texas-drivers-who-surrounded-biden-bus-while-the-presidents-supporters-block-traffic-in-new-york-and-new-jersey.html?fbclid=IwAR0ZUpWQ8N_q8XCXynSrKmeObiaNPj854IewzoX1jiZPQ60Yw8ZvDWxPS9o.

They may not have been wearing brownshirts of the early 1930's in Germany, but they are political thugs, nonetheless...and Trump has their back...he thinks. That the FBI (his agency) is investigating them is encouraging. After all, Director Christopher Wray has already been told by Trump he will be fired because he has not danced to Trump's tune. Trump's idea is that law and order only applies to those who oppose him.. By the way, these "patriots" he calls them also tried their stunt in Denver.

Fascism is not in the future: it is here now. If it looks like a duck, waddles like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it is a duck..Trump is looking like a fascist, acting like one, and speaking like one. In an epic quack,, Trump recently threatened to sen 75,000 federal agents into cities to "bring law and order" and says many times he wants the feds to "dominate the streets". Action speaks louder than words. . Trump is now the provocateur in chief, creating violence so he can tell in followers he can cure violence. It provides great photo ops and stories on FOX as he tries to scare those wavering support of him that he is the law and order president to save them from the violence he has provoked. Law and order .means to him he creates the disorder and violates the law to save people from the disorder he provoked. He deserves that designation because he s mimicking strategies fascists of the 1930s used to gain and keep power. Masha Gessen, author of "Surviving Autocracy" concluded that Trump is acting fascism. In 2018, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright sounded the alarm on fascism, not that she was ready to call Trump a fascist, there were some warning signs, especially his belief he was above the law. https://www.pri.org/stories/2018-04-25/madeleine-albright-thinks-its-time-set-alarm-fascism. She wrote that before Trump sent his federal secret forces into Lafayette Square and Portland, Oregon.
Anne Applebaum writing in the Atlantic: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/07/trump-putting-show-portland/614521/ "The president is deploying the kind of performative authoritarianism that Vladimir Putin pioneered."
https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/23/politics/trump-federal-agents-us-cities/index.html
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/06/02/despite-mcenanys-pushback-trump-makes-it-abundantly-clear-what-he-means-by-dominate/

I write this with reluctance because accusing someone of being fascist is inflammatory. and immediately comes to mind Hitler and the Nazis. The more polite term media has settled on is authoritarianism.  It is a philosophical word that means something similar to the practice of fascism and communist dictatorships. Karen Stenner, the author of “The Authoritarian Dynamic,”  described as what we are facing with Trump is not a fight conducted by the conservative right but it is coming from another animal: authoritarianism. I am relating her term to a familiar historical reference, fascism. Fascism is one manifestation of authoritarianism as practiced by fascists of the 1930s. However, authoritarianism can also describe the dictatorial rule of Stalin. Another term in the '30s and '40s that has been used by critics of the fascists is totalitarianism which is the most extreme form of authoritarianism that governs and demands conformity of every aspect of civil life. Stenner penned an email to columnist  Tom  Edsell  witing on the issue to make the case  that democracy is under threat by authoritarians, not conservatives.:

"It’s really critical to help people understand the difference between conservatives and authoritarians. Conservatives are by nature opposed to change and novelty, whereas authoritarians are averse to diversity and complexity. It’s a subtle but absolutely critical distinction. What we’re facing..is an authoritarian revolution — not a conservative revolution, the term is inherently contradictory — which in the U.S. has been creeping up since the 1960s."  https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/22/opinion/liberals-conservatives-trump-america.html   

 Hitler was the most extreme model of fascism, but Mussolini, Peron, and Pinochet, the Argentine junta, and  South American dictators come to mind. Not all were racists,but all used brutal measures to contain and destroy their opposition. These are all dictators of the extreme right-wing or military who came to power in countries with nominally democratic governments. In our current era, more newly minted dictators riding the wave of chaos or fear and hatred are Vladimir Putin of Russia and Erdogan of Turkey.  More moderate versions are raising their heads in Poland and Hungary who do not tolerate and who persecute dissidents and rose to power by anti-immigrant  oratory.  We have seen before the fall of the Berlin Wall, the dictatorships and totalitarian control by those from the extreme left, the Communists following at worst the Stalinist model.  They were likewise as damaging to humanity and human rights as were any 1930's fascists.  They are not the only alternative to governance, but the absolute enemy of democracy embraced by the founders of America and post World War II Europe that provides the third way of humane governance we have enjoyed until now.  Most attempts at our kind of democracy have met totalitarianism and dictatorships and the supporters of democracy failed to stop their takeover, by forms of totalitarianism and dictatorships, kings, and tyrants from early Greece and Rome to more modern eras. Our democracy is 250 years old, and only with the grace of those dedicated to democracy of both political parties stand in the way of its demise. Small d democracy calls for allegiance to the rule of law instead of the rule of a person, with the law formed by a freely elected representative government, protecting freedom of the press, the right to peacefully assemble to present grievances, and other  protections included  among  all those civil rights  addressed in the First Amendment

A strategy used by Hitler is similar to one Trump in Portland, OR.  Both fomented the civil strife they claimed they could fix.  Hitler sent his brown shirts out to foment street demonstrations and burned down the Reichstag so he could claim he could bring order to Germany. The strategy worked.  Gessen, on MSNBC Friday, July 24, 2020, reminded us that Fascism in Germany took as many as 6 years to mature into the horror we associated with it.  The point is that it is a gradual takeover and it started step by step. Gessen concluded that Trump is acting fascism, whether he or his followers realize it.   Mussolini had another description of the process: To paraphrase If you pluck one chicken feather at a time, it times before the chicken realizes it is nearly bald.

  As Gessen pointed out so far only a third of Americans are approving of Trump's more extreme actions. Hitler in 1932 series of presidential elections and control of the parliament got around 33-37% of the popular vote before he seized power in 1933. He used parliamentary coalitions to gain great control. The US does not have a parliamentary system and there are checks and balances still in effect and are being exercised, mostly through the courts, since the Senate GOP members are complacent, compliant or complicit or are loyal to him or afraid of him...What is eerily similar though is that the size of Hitler's hardcore base percentage in elections in 1932 is similar to Trump's base percentage of the electorate in 2020.

Not only is Donald Trump contending he is above the US law, he says he is above the law and the World Court governing crimes against humanity. Having known victims, including relatives, of war crimes conducted by those in the 1990's Balkan wars (of ethnic cleansing) I well aware of war crimes conducted there and I followed the international prosecution that brought those who committed the mass killings was made possible by the World Court. I have been in Courtroom 600 in Nuremberg and listened to a docent recount much of what went on and the results there. The ghosts of Hitler the demagogue addressing the masses of uninformed Heil Hitler saluting him haunted me when I visited the Nuremberg stadium where one of his largest rallies took place. It reminded me of how vulnerable humanity can be inspired to violating the standards of civilization when actions are motivated by hate and lust for power. There is a reason that the largest demographic of voters supporting Trump are those with no college education. They have either forgotten what they learned in whatever education they had or do not see the parallel of Trump to the early rise of fascism in the 1930s. Having lived and studied in Germany 12 years after the end of World War II and married a refugee from Communist Yugoslavia, inhumane totalitarian governments are to be prevented and nipped in the bud whether their dictators ride their rise to power on the wings of left or right ideology.
https://billmoyers.com/story/nuremberg-prosecutors-warning-about-trumps-war-on-the-rule-of-law/

An update 7/4/2020 and 7/23/2020 The fact that Trump is trying to call demonstrations left-wing fascism shows how defensive he is to being called a fascist himself

He thinks that by redefining fascism, he can avoid the charge. It is classic Trump: call his opposition what others are calling him. Street violence is an expression of a revolt against injustice.committed by the oppressed of any ideology.

 The term fascism is not a swear word;  It is the diametric opposite of democracy. It is also a method to get power and to keep it. Fascism is a form of governance, of authoritarianism, based on hyper-nationalism, totalitarian control of justice and domination of power over civilian life, the crushing of dissidents and press freedom, the end of any checks on executive power, ending the rule of law. while keeping and using private sector economic powers.  t. All of those elements are what Trump has to some extent aspired to in his statements. Fascism in various forms is a streak running through the American experience. It has roots in the KKK and emerged in strength in the late 1930's. https://www.nybooks.com/daily/2020/06/22/american-fascism-it-has-happened-here/

Hate crimes in US reach highest level in more than a decade (apnews.com)

https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2016/10/21/how-fascist-is-donald-trump-theres-actually-a-formula-for-that/ This was written during the 2016 campaign, but the criteria of what is a fascist are relevant. The exhortation to violence and racism that have emerged since then might give him more "benitos".

He praises racist militias as fine people,, and attacks even peaceful demonstrators, and called for active military domination on the streets,, attempts to suppress the free press, caters to the 1% on economic matters, and stacking the justice system and judges with loyalists., while claiming he is above the law.
. Born in 1938, I have early memories toward the end of World War II of how it met its fate and in the late 1950's I spent a year in war-torn Germany, Italy, and the Balkans wondering how it could have happened. In most cases, a willing populace voted them in and supported its rise.  The blame is shared by both their leaders and the people who supported them for reasons ranging from ethnic/religious/racial hatred to fear of communism to economic gains in a time of economic stress and political turmoil. Germany 's Nazism was the most extreme form of fascism. Hitler's Third Reich was a popular enough solution to boost him to power since many believed it served to restore Germany's greatness post defeat in World War I with the devastating reparations, and later coupled with the depression. 

Continuing the 6/ 4/2020 posting.
I wrote the blog posting below one month into the Trump administration...February 2017.  It was my reason for not calling Trump a fascist.  Name-calling and using the word fascism and Trump in the same breath is admittedly inflammatory and I stated why I did not call him a fascist then and why he did not yet fit the definition.
Here is why I am using it now  1. In three and a half years his racism and appeal to white nationalism is not subtle. It was not a show business device. His view of  Justice is not equally applied or color blind and he uses racism to feather his political nest, divide and conquer  2. Hoodwinking US military officials into intervening to promote his political agenda  3. Calling all demonstrators, peaceful and violent, thugs to be dominated by force and oppression. 4. Willful ignorance of Constitutional constraints on the executive's power and protections of peaceful demonstrations.  Update: 7/9/2020: No, Mr. President. You are not a king or a dictator. This is the most important part of the 7-2 Supreme Court decision yesterday. President Trump had asserted he could not be investigated or charged with a crime as president: The rule of law and Trump's compliance was upheld. Being the president did not give him special immunity.  He had absolute immunity in criminal matters, he claimed.  He did not have to comply with subpoenas in criminal matters from grand juries.  No, said the court. He does not. He has the rights of any ordinary citizens and he had to respond to subpoenas in criminal cases, even if issued by State or Federal prosecutors.  The checks and balances on presidential power held. The President was not above the law, though the president had claimed he was. This confirms the basic tenant of the Constitution and it was upheld by even Trump's recent appointees, Justices Kavanaugh and Gorsuch.   The political impact is that we will not get the President's tax returns before November. The Congressional subpoena of Trump's financial records issued for legislative oversight reasons was also sent back to the lower courts. The New York state case regarding tax returns was sent back to the grand jury process. The grand jury process is secret unless there is an indictment resulting in a trial, and the other concerning Congress oversight was sent back to narrow the scope of the subpoena.  Congress had the power over the executive branch of oversight was untouched. It does.. The reason for the New York case was to see if Trump committed a tax crime in the Stormy Daniels and Michael Cohen payoff case. Congress wanted to see if financial crimes were involved, with an underlying suspicion that Russia had something on Trump that explained why he kowtowed to Putin in so many matters.  https://www.newsweek.com/colin-powell-donald-trump-america-we-people-madeleine-albright-constitution-1157119?fbclid=IwAR18fW3EczffZLXVdiTCPKZeJ8cgMePJ_cFfqsChsetAkhFAZDy--ma3xbk5.  Announcing his intent to use US military against our own civilians. These put him firmly in the ranks of the 1930's fascists.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/06/05/89-former-defense-officials-military-must-never-be-used-violate-constitutional-rights/?fbclid=IwAR2AS7HM5YZ26ckmSfGJ-LhFWlTLq7IowLWt_L6wBgWeahQSNchkK8qNFf4

Some intellectual roots of the Tea Party and racist movements of the Trump era may be found in the following:https://www.ineteconomics.org/perspectives/blog/meet-the-economist-behind-the-one-percents-stealth-takeover-of-america   The phrase that curled my hair was that once oligarchs take over, a stronger government was needed to put down a populist revolt.

One of the most damning comments about what would happen in a Trump second term would be the end of democracy..and this came from a respected Republican, William Cohen: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/amanpour-and-company/video/former-secretary-of-defense-william-cohen-on-the-election/?fbclid=IwAR0YyjwgZnoApMxPPIuPKCqDTLirv6DKa_FQsA536J5YEDoysWXuHW4cWFo
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR: I guess, you know, you’ve been on the cutting edge of foreign policy for so long. What do you see and what do you expect if there was to be a second Trump administration?

WILLIAM COHEN, FORMER U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: Well, if that were to take place, then I think we would not recognize America as a democracy. I think President Trump is taking us down the road to tyranny, to one-man rule, to try and replicate what he sees as a positive in Moscow with President Putin or in Turkey with President Erdogan, or over in China or North Korea. I think he wants to have one-man rule, and it’s not the rule of law but just the opposite. It’s the law of rule, where he only can make decisions. And he said quite, you know, publicly on multiple occasions, I’m above the law. The law doesn’t apply to me. I’m the chief law enforcement officer. I am the commander in chief. Nothing I do is illegal because I do it. And so, if you take away an obligation to run for reelection, now, he has absolute authority to do whatever he wants because he feels he’s not even bound by the law. And so, I see a very dictatorial absolutist type of rule in the country, and again, I don’t think we’ll be a democracy at that point.

Updated  blog posting: Feb. 17-25 2017
 I have refrained from calling the Trump administration fascist. It is not there yet.  It is too early to tell and the constraints of law and the Constitution may keep President Trump from putting some of his innate tendencies into practice. However, every day it seems Trump's actions resemble even more the examples of fascism as practiced in the 20th century.

The definition of fascism as a philosophy is complex, but actions can be the definer, too.     Calling someone fascist brings to mind Hitler, the gas chambers, the hyper-nationalism, the rallies and parades, and a goal of economic recovery based on ramping up the military/industrial complex,  blaming and scapegoating minorities, and feeding on the emotions of those who hate "others".   Hitler seems to personify it in many minds, though the 20th-century ideological roots are actually in Italy and Mussolini and not all authoritarian governments are fascist.

 While President Trump certainly does not fit the extreme Hitler mold, there are some similar elements to the rise of fascism in Europe found in Trump's tweets and orders and techniques,  such as holding rallies to whip up supporters' enthusiasm and hyper-nationalism, exaggerating potential external security threats and the weakness of our military,  and the failure of an economy,. He is ignoring the fact that the economy has the lowest unemployment rate since 2009 and had a pre-election robust Wall Street. True, the blue-collar middle class has been left behind. Whatever Trump advocates, the US in 2017 is nowhere like Germany in the early '30s that was decimated by reparations and the Depression.

With crowd-pleasing rhetoric and tweets, Trump claims the only facts that are not fake are those considered true by the Trump administration. He verbally delegitimizes other centers of power,  courts, and their judges,   and media.  Stephen Bannon is the president's most trusted and closest adviser and is also an example of the hatred factor found in fascism. Bannon had been CEO  of Breitbart, the media public platform for white supremacists and ultra-nationalists.  Leading to Trump's own rise on the political scene was "Obama was born in Kenya" birtherism crusade, considered by many to be dog whistles to racists. Whether or not Bannon and he are racists and bigots themselves is the lesser issue.  Like Bannon  Trump tolerates and exploits racism for political gain, even being reluctant to condemn bigotry until forced to. His Muslim ban obviously appeals to religious bigots. Pressed for weeks to condemn Jewish cemetery vandalism and threats against religious centers, he finally made a statement last week condemning anti-Semitism.

These last couple of weeks of his media relations were particularly disturbing and brought him a step closer to qualifying as at least a wannabe fascist.  Looking at how the fascist movement got into power in the last century, we can see some similarities.  One is an attempt to bully and control the press and to take over the messaging. Trump is beginning the process by excluding "opposition" outlets.  CNN and the New York Times were kept from the press "gaggle"at a non-televised briefing at the White House and Trump and his spokespeople have refused to call on reporters who represented media promoting stories critical of him. These were obvious attempts at "punishing" CNN and the Times. Their sin: reporting on Trump's possible even closer relationship with Russians during the campaign. (Added June, 2020. John Bolton's tell all book, Trump called journalists scumbags that should be executied;https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/503244-bolton-claims-trump-called-for-scumbag-journalists-to-be-executed)

The most serious media-related event raised the question of whether his administration had tried to influence the FBI's investigation into the Trump campaign's colluding with the Russians. One version reported by the media was that Reince Priebus, Trump's chief of staff, had approached the FBI director asking him to tamp down a report being leaked from the agency as flawed because there was no evidence any Russian contact involved Russian agents. The Trump administration did not deny the contact had been made with Russians, but said it was not their agents, and counterclaimed that the FBI director had approached Priebus. If the latter is true, then the FBI's impartiality and credibility in their Russian related investigations into Russian hacking and meddling in the 2016 elections are jeopardized. If the administration initiated the contact with the FBI, then they are verging on a Nixon-like cover-up and look guilty that there is a fire in the smoke. Adding to suspicions that there is something there there,  as many have noted, Trump has never flatly denied that contact with  Russians and his campaign staff occurred but instead has tried to deflect attention to "illegal leaks",  as a way to direct public attention and media focus elsewhere and a way to scotch deeper probes.

 Either way, the exchange with the FBI flap is not good news for the Trump administration. In that dust-up, what has been clear is that the Trump administration is fearful that the FBI or the other investigations being conducted by intelligence agencies will find the smoking gun of collusion with  Russian agents. If that collusion turns out to be sanctioned or conducted by Donald Trump himself or others in his campaign acting under his direction, that could lead to impeachment at worse or destroying the credibility, legitimacy,  and effectiveness of the administration at best.  The stakes are very high.

.Populism has also been an element in the rise of fascism.  Candidate Trump's appeal to the blue-collar working demographic was more populist than corporate.  Ironically, a  corporatist element has been added to  Trump's presidential administration with the appointment of the team of billionaires to the various cabinet posts. These cabinet officers have been charged to de-construct their departments, eliminating consumer and environmental protections that were designed to protect the middle class from corporate excesses.

The populist rationale Trump has pitched to the public is that this pro-business, anti-environment/consumer approach will lead to high paying job creation in the rust belt and national economic growth. Those most affected by economic struggles are without a college education and robotics have replaced many of those jobs once held by human beings. Some blame unions, too, for holding back efficiencies. Trump has not provided any plan to fix those problems but instead has blamed bad trade policies.  Whether protectionism will result in high paying jobs with a workforce ill-equipped to fill them or reduce robotics is doubtful. If proof of Russian collusion does not lead to his defeat in 2020, his failure to provide promised economic growth and high paying job creation will. As counties who voted for Obama in the past then went for  Trump in 2016 showed,  populism is a fickle beast.

Another parallel with the practice of German fascism is Trump's reliance on militarism to promote US leadership in the world. The current world order he is de-constructing is one based on mutual defense treaties  (NATO) and multinational economic and trade arrangements. Instead, Trump's vision of leadership is relying on military muscle power as a threat to deter attacks and as a "might makes right" bully power over the rest of the world.  Where it does differ from Hitler's rise is that Hitler used military buildup in manufacturing as an argument to the public, promoting it as a way to pull Germany out of the depression.