Vladimir Putin is a fascist. Donald Trump the leader of the “GOP” has common cause with Putin. The 45th President is a wannabe fascist. This weekend he doubled down on his racial purity spiel and "proved" his authoritarian argument by quoting Putin as labelling the USA a "rotten democracy". For good measure he once again sung the praises of Kim Jun Un and Victor Orban. He spoke about camps and mass deportations..... Nobody in the "GOP" legislature condemned this dark rhetoric.
The “GOP” in Congress have failed to support a personal desperate urgent appeal from Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine in his defense of fascist Russia’s neo - colonial armed attempt to incorporate Ukraine into Russia. Trump has made it quite clear on whose side he is on. While sooner or later enough of the "GOP" may relent but there is very little doubt where Trump ventures the lemmings ultimately follow. Ukraine is just a symptom of the current terminally ill “GOP”. The latter no longer support democracy, period.
Jay H. Ell believes that the immediate future of democracy in the USA is dependent on the third branch of Government, the Judiciary, which to date have answered the challenge. The final arbiter the Supreme Court, face a crucial test as to whether they will hold Trump and those responsible for the January 6 insurrection accountable. If that attempted coup, the gravest abrogation of the rule of law, has no legal consequences American democracy will receive a blow that will take eons to recover from. `
All this is in the context that the current ideological battle in the world is no longer between Communism and Democracy. It is between Authoritarianism/Fascism versus Democracy. The 45th President is a would be fascist dictator and the former Republican Party of Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Ike Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan are followers of their wannabe fascist leader.
However this is not the USA’s first venture into authoritarianism/fascism. This is a recurring malaise.
FASCISM AND THE MORIBUND “GOP”.
Firstly, what characterizes fascism. Central is an ideology which Trump certainly has - he believes first and foremost that the President is above the law and should have absolute authority. He has all the other accoutrements, such as the white race is superior, no government bureaucracy, no rule of law or any safety net for the less fortunate. Fascism needs a dictator and he is applying for the job. (Even if he claims he wants to be one for only one day). The ideology does not believe in any political opposition and the individuals’ rights are subordinate to that of the nation. While Trump’s friend Vladimir goes the whole nine yards with his militarism, Trump qualifies to be on the spectrum of autocracy/fascism with Xi, The Rocket Man - whom he loves and Victor Orban.
The “GOP” in effect are backing Putin by not urgently aiding Zelensky in his struggle. They don’t care if Europe is conquered by fascist Putin. Nor do they give a hoot that they are attempting to foist minority viewpoints on the majority because they are the “ubermensch”.They are in enthrall of the “Orange Jesus”. They are initiating an impeachment of Biden at Trump’s behest, an act that guarantees a Democratic take over of the House of Representatives. It bears repeating that the majority o the “GOP” in Congress did not support the peaceful transition of power and voted against accepting the valid election results in 2020.
The new “GOP” House of Representative’s Speaker, Mike Johnson, who looks the type of guy you would buy a used car from, is evil incarnate. He is the author of an amicus brief where a number of States challenged the legitimate election results and has not publicly accepted that Biden is the duly elected President even though he has given the go ahead to an impeachment enquiry of him. Mitch McConnell, the Minority Leader of the Senate, who has claims to respectability, was the midwife delivering the Supreme Court that Trump ensured his followers would axe Roe v Wade. He has changed his attitude in the face of the apparent inevitability of Trump being the “GOP” nominee for President. In spite of the fact that he opined that Trump should be held accountable civilly and criminally for the January 6 insurrection, he is now committed to support the “GOP” nominee whoever that may be!
But this is not fascism's first rodeo in the USA.
HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF AMERICAN RACISM/AUTHORITARIANISM
The historians and the commentators argue as to the genesis of this transformation of the party of Lincoln. There are some that maintain that it was always there and the South really won the war. Others put forward that the foundations were laid at the end of the 19th Century with Jim Crow laws and the Klu Klux Klan. Then there was the massive support of Germany’s Nazism in the thirties, the McCarthyism in the fifties and Nixon’s Southern Strategy in the seventies. The modern day theorists claim it begun with Newt Gingrich in 1996 who had an anarchist attitude to government. But whenever it began, here we are today and the Grand Old Party is an authoritarian cult.
Jay H. Ell believes that there is synthesis between Heather Cox Richardson’s viewpoint as articulated in her recent book “Democracy Awakening” and Rachel Maddow’s ”'Prequel”. They both seem to accent that the nineteen thirties was a forerunner to the present day scenario. Richardson points to the emerging of a forgotten document, "The Conservative Manifesto”, while Maddow focusses on the massive support the Nazis had in the thirties.
The Conservative Manifesto
At that stage of history there were many Democrats that were ad idem with several Republicans who were dead against Franklyn Roosevelt’s “New Deal”. “The Conservative Manifesto”, written in 1937, broadly outlined the view of small government, low taxes especially no capital gains,, no coercion of labor to gain higher wages, decentralization of government - state and home rule, unnecessary competition by government of private enterprise, local non political aid for unemployment and “Reliance upon the American form of Government ” - code for the whole ton of bricks.
Needless to say this “Manifesto” was at odds with “The New Deal” which sought to level the playing field, begin to provide a protective shield for the unemployed, bargaining rights for labor and a far more centralized form of Government and certainly no relief on taxation.
Fascism in America in the 1930’s
Rachel Maddow's expose is an eye opener as to the extent of Nazi Germany and concomitant rabid anti semitism support in America making Franklyn Roosevelt’s job of supporting the Allies in WW11 extremely difficult. In addition it helps explain why the 900 Jewish Refugees on the St. Louis were not allowed to disembark. Ken Burns the famed cinematic historian who did a three part series on the holocaust estimates if America would have been open to the fleeing Jews, 2,000,000 might have been saved.
There were a slew of Congressmen and Senators directly in the pay of the Nazis who were openly propagating fascist propaganda. They were searching for a potential dictator in the mould of Hitler. Maddow focuses on three prominent figures who were leading the charge. Henry Ford that scion of industry who brought the motor vehicle to the masses was a rabid anti semite. It was he who influenced Hitler and not vice versa. The Furher had a portrait of Ford hung above his head. He quoted Ford in the first edition of Mein Kamf. Think of Ford as being as influential as Elon Musk. The motor giant had episodes from the fraudulent Protocols of the Elders of Zion on the front seat of every car sold.
The America’s hero of the day, the charismatic, Charles Lindbergh, the aviator led the powerful America First movement, with all the connotations that the name might conjure up - sound familiar. Lindbergh was a close friend of Ford. Like Ford he was not in favor of democracy to put it at its kindest and in spite of his denials was an anti semite. Lindbergh for his efforts was a willing recipient of the Order of the German Eagle which was presented to him by Herman Goring, no less, on behalf of Adolph Hitler. He was fully fledged vocal anti interventionist in the War a self admitted racist but there were apologists galore for him and there still are. His name recognition in America was equivalent to that of Trump and was magnified by the kidnapping and murder of his baby. He shut up after Pearl Harbour and Germany declared war on America.
Finally there was Father Coughlin the anti semitic Pro Nazi propagandist. Coughlin would have made Fox News envious. He had 30,000,000 followers of his radio broadcasts and backed all the protagonists of German indoctrination which was being directed from Nazi Germany which in many instances was financed through their embassies. There was sophisticated mailers from Germany and even from Congress Members' Offices.
Pro Nazi paramilitary groups armed to the teeth abounded, the principle entity being The Silver Shirts who had chapters all across the country. The fore runners to the modern day Oath Keepers and Proud Boys.
SO WHERE ARE WE NOW?
So in December 2023 the world is where it was in September 1938 on the verge of an attempt to takeover Europe by a fascist ruler. Anti semitism, fascism’s natural accompaniment is on the rise. Chamberlain the UK Prime Minister orchestrated the agreement with Hitler, who after conquering Czechoslovakia, undertook to attempt no more territorial expansionism. The attempt at appeasement failed as soon after Hitler invaded Poland. Today’s equivalent is Russia invading Ukraine where they expected, in a week, to overrun their equivalent of Czechoslovakia, but have met with incredible resistance. Poland incidentally have little doubt that should Ukraine fall they are next.
Like President Roosevelt before him President Biden has provided the wherewithal to fight fascism. So the circumstances are different but what is happening in America bears stark similarities to those of fascist pre WW11 days. America was riddled with pro Nazi movements and anti semitic sentiment.
All this taking place to the background of Donald Trump, a “GOP” party that yearns for a dictatorship and a racist leader who wants all authority to accrue to himself. The country is experiencing historic post war anti semitic hate crimes and Trump has all but sown up the “GOP” nomination. In some ways the situation is worse than in 1939 because this noxious ideology has the support of one of the two major American political parties. In addition the Leader Donald Trump attempted a coup and was and still is supported by the majority of the party’s elected representatives.
WHAT MIGHT HELP THE SITUATION
Heather Cox Richardson points out in all these other incarnations of anti democracy none of the leaders were brought to account. From Lincoln, who said that there should be no recriminations and hangings to Nixon who was pardoned by Ford to “Heal The Nation”.
The situation is on its way to be different now. Over a thousand of Trump’s stormtroopers have been found guilty and have been sentenced and he is facing criminal charges. The Courts to date have stood firm but it is ultimately up to the gerrymandered Supreme Court to decide whether Trump who has caused an insurrection should be able to even run for office. Whether or not he is immune for any crime he may have committed as President is central to a nation of laws and is before the high court now. More obliquely and even more dangerously is that the legislation under which Trump and the insurrectionist army have been charged is being argued as not being valid.
Should the Supreme Court decide one way or another that these seditious acts should go unpunished America will take far longer to recover from this current anti democracy wave.
AT THE END OF THE DAY
Even if Biden wins and the Democrats sweep the House and hang onto the Senate the Grand Old Party ain’t grand. it ain’t a Party anymore and ain’t old, it is dead. That is not terribly good for democracy either.
Oh by the way at the end of the day Ukraine may still get its money. This being the last hurrah of pro democracy of the Grand Old Party.
Where fascism lurks rabid antisemitism is not far behind.
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