<
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/07/donald-trump-democracy-dictator/679006/>
"When a madman hammered nearly to death the husband of then–House Speaker Nancy
Pelosi, Donald Trump jeered and mocked. One of Trump’s sons and other close
Trump supporters avidly promoted false claims that Paul Pelosi had somehow
brought the onslaught upon himself through a sexual misadventure.
After authorities apprehended a right-wing-extremist plot to abduct Michigan
Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Trump belittled the threat at a rally. He disparaged
Whitmer as a political enemy. His supporters chanted “Lock her up.” Trump
laughed and replied, “Lock them all up.”
Fascism feasts on violence. In the years since his own supporters attacked the
Capitol to overturn the 2020 election—many of them threatening harm to Speaker
Pelosi and Vice President Mike Pence—Trump has championed the invaders,
would-be kidnappers, and would-be murderers as martyrs and hostages. He has
vowed to pardon them if returned to office. His own staffers have testified to
the glee with which Trump watched the mayhem on television.
Now the bloodshed that Trump has done so much to incite against others has
touched him as well. The attempted murder of Trump—and the killing of a person
nearby—is a horror and an outrage. More will be learned about the man who
committed this appalling act, and who was killed by the Secret Service.
Whatever his mania or motive, the only important thing about him is the
law-enforcement mistake that allowed him to bring a deadly weapon so close to a
campaign event and gain a sight line of the presidential candidate. His name
should otherwise be erased and forgotten.
It is sadly incorrect to say, as so many have, that political violence “has no
place” in American society. Assassinations, lynchings, riots, and pogroms have
stained every page of American political history. That has remained true to the
present day. In 2016, and even more in 2020, Trump supporters brought weapons
to intimidate opponents and vote-counters. Trump and his supporters envision a
new place for violence as their defining political message in the 2024
election.
Fascist movements are secular religions. Like all religions, they offer martyrs
as their proof of truth. The Mussolini movement in Italy built imposing
monuments to its fallen comrades. The Trump movement now improves on that: The
leader himself will be the martyr in chief, his own blood the basis for his bid
for power and vengeance."
Via Susan ****
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
