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This is how fascism comes to America

iguanaman

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That's the title of this piece in the Wa Po and it makes some excellent points.....and it is very unsettling to say the least.

The Republican Party’s attempt to treat Donald Trump as a normal political candidate would be laughable were it not so perilous to the republic. If only he would mouth the party’s “conservative” principles, all would be well.

But of course the entire Trump phenomenon has nothing to do with policy or ideology. It has nothing to do with the Republican Party, either, except in its historic role as incubator of this singular threat to our democracy. Trump has transcended the party that produced him. His growing army of supporters no longer cares about the party. Because it did not immediately and fully embrace Trump, because a dwindling number of its political and intellectual leaders still resist him, the party is regarded with suspicion and even hostility by his followers. Their allegiance is to him and him alone.

And the source of allegiance? We’re supposed to believe that Trump’s support stems from economic stagnation or dislocation. Maybe some of it does. But what Trump offers his followers are not economic remedies — his proposals change daily. What he offers is an attitude, an aura of crude strength and machismo, a boasting disrespect for the niceties of the democratic culture that he claims, and his followers believe, has produced national weakness and incompetence. His incoherent and contradictory utterances have one thing in common: They provoke and play on feelings of resentment and disdain, intermingled with bits of fear, hatred and anger. His public discourse consists of attacking or ridiculing a wide range of “others” — Muslims, Hispanics, women, Chinese, Mexicans, Europeans, Arabs, immigrants, refugees — whom he depicts either as threats or as objects of derision. His program, such as it is, consists chiefly of promises to get tough with foreigners and people of nonwhite complexion. He will deport them, bar them, get them to knuckle under, make them pay up or make them shut up.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/this-is-how-fascism-comes-to-america/2016/05/17/c4e32c58-1c47-11e6-8c7b-6931e66333e7_story.html?wpmm=1&wpisrc=nl_most-draw4
 
Fascism is already here.
 
Did you see Barbara Boxer talking about Sanders' protesters? She was on CNN yesterday. She was incredulous that the Sanders backers would not just do what she said. Her attitude was 'how dare they boo me and not follow my instructions'. It was quite amusing. I'm going to see if I can find it. Maybe CNN posted the interview.
 
Robert Kagan is the long-time collaborator with William Kristol and both are basically the brain power behind the infamous PNAC.

Kagan has over the past few years, become disillusioned with the GOP, because of its hysterical reaction toward President Obama--turning him into the antithesis of what Americans want and deserve to have in a leader. Because of that and because of the rise of Trump, Kagan had chosen to vote for Hillary Clinton.

Essentially, he's noticed most of what I have seen from Republicans, whether they were Tea Partiers or Trump fans (and the often unacknowledged linkages between them). He and I may disagree with foreign affairs, but basically his last two big submissions are my sentiments exactly.
 
That's the title of this piece in the Wa Po and it makes some excellent points.....and it is very unsettling to say the least.

What's really unsettling is that for a number of Bernie supporters (less than 10%), Trump is their 2nd choice.
 
This is from that interview:

Sen. Barbara Boxer: 'It was a scary situation' - CNN Video

That isn't the part I mentioned above, but it was quite humorous to see how hard it was for her to understand that her own party might not like her.

Sander's is not a Democrat and neither are many of his supporters. I also believe that it is possible that some are "plants" meant to capitalize on and instigate disruption among Democrats. Stranger things have happened.
 
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I think it is time to stop seeing fascism everywhere. I do not like Trump but let's get real here...

The problem is that I am having a hard time finding another ideology that defines Trump. What would you call his brand of populism if not facist?
 
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The article is overly dramatic (fascism is a strong word), and contains some strange statements (The Nazi, of all people, had no consistent ideology? Please), but essentially Kagan is correct: you have a growing personality cult promising authoritarian governing style (assuming that the Congress turns collaborationist). Of course, there are still courts, as the last line of defense.
 
The problem is that I am having a hard time finding another ideology that defines Trump. What would you call his brand of populism if not facist?

Trump is certainly a demagogue.
 
This is from that interview:

Sen. Barbara Boxer: 'It was a scary situation' - CNN Video

That isn't the part I mentioned above, but it was quite humorous to see how hard it was for her to understand that her own party might not like her.

Did you see Barbara Boxer talking about Sanders' protesters? She was on CNN yesterday. She was incredulous that the Sanders backers would not just do what she said. Her attitude was 'how dare they boo me and not follow my instructions'. It was quite amusing. I'm going to see if I can find it. Maybe CNN posted the interview.

Didn't see any fascists.
 
I think it is time to stop seeing fascism everywhere. I do not like Trump but let's get real here...
This is real. Fascism isn't an absolute, it's a gray scale that we've been sliding into like an e-tard into a hooker.

Trump is an authoritarian personality, and he's proposed authoritarian policies--that's what it comes down to.
 
Fascism is already here.
The fact that you can say that on a public forum without being hauled away by the secret police, is a sign that you are wrong.
 
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