Look, I fundamentally disagree with the timing and characterization of these revelations. The label of 'fascist' for Trump doesn't quite resonate with me, given the four years he was in office. If his intent had been to establish fascist policies, the COVID-19 pandemic would have provided a perfect opportunity. In contrast, while other liberal democratic governments in the West (e.g., Italy, Spain, New Zealand, Australia, France, Germany, Canada) were enacting drastic nationwide lockdowns, mandating masks, severely restricting travel, and pushing vaccine mandates, Trump’s response was notably restrained for someone labeled as a fascist. His approach was decentralized, focusing on individual states' autonomy rather than imposing federal-level fascist mandates. And, during the post-George Floyd protests, he had the chance to play the classic dictator card and impose martial law—but, strangely enough, he didn’t. He just left it to state authorities. Oh, and he somehow managed to avoid bombing or invading any random countries during his term—definitely not what we’d expect from a textbook fascist.
So, the rhetoric about Trump being the second coming of Hitler feels overblown. You may not like him—and that’s fine—but let’s be accurate when assigning labels that don’t quite fit.
If we’re talking fascist tendencies, let’s aim at Dubya and Cheney. The same cnuts whose disastrous neocon agenda in the Middle East killed hundreds of thousands, and whose Patriot Act—a massive assault on citizens' rights—fits the authoritarian bill a lot better. But, of course, they’re now whitewashed and celebrated as 'defenders of democracy' by both liberal and conservative media—and even by four-star generals!
