<
https://theconversation.com/is-donald-trump-a-fascist-no-hes-a-new-brand-of-authoritarian-241586>
"Is Donald Trump a fascist? General Mark Milley, the former chairman of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff under Trump, thinks so. Trump is “fascist to the core,”
he warns.
John Kelly, Trump’s former chief of staff, agrees. So does Vice President
Kamala Harris, his opponent in this year’s presidential election.
But political commentators who have a grounding in history are not so sure.
Writing in
The Guardian, Sidney Blumenthal calls Trump “Hitlerian” and his
rallies “Naziesque”, but stops short of calling him a fascist.
Michael Tomasky of
The New Republic understands the reservations, but he is
tired spending time debating the difference between “fascistic” and just plain
“fascist”. “He’s damn close enough,” Tomasky writes, “and we’d better fight”.
I understand this logic. It’s the reason Harris uses the term “fascist” to
describe Trump – to send “a 911 call to the American people”. But there’s a
problem.
I have spent the past six years researching right-wing, authoritarian political
communication in America. I can say with confidence how these kinds of labels
can misfire. They can very easily be made to look like liberal hysteria,
playing straight into the hands of the far right.
Here are the two reasons why it is crucial to call Trump exactly what he is.
1. Calling Trump a fascist, and then instantly adding, “or close enough,” plays
directly into the hands of the far right. “See?” they might say. “Anytime
anyone steps outside the liberal consensus, they get labelled a fascist. This
is how political correctness silences dissent.”
2. Trump’s kind of authoritarianism thrives on ambiguity about what sort of
right-wing populist figure he is. Its success depends on the fact that
“fascist” is the only name we have right now for authoritarian politics.
In my view, Trump is not a fascist. Rather, he is part of a “new
authoritarianism” that subverts democracy from within and solidifies power
through administrative, rather than paramilitary, means."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
