My working thesis is that Trump is not really a fascist, but many of the elements of MAGA and his administration are. Miller and Vought spring to mind, but all the "anti-woke" crusaders who want to programmatically destroy any vestige of cultural liberalism would qualify.
Martin Longman makes an interesting argument that Trump's similarities to Hitler are largely stylistic. He shares with Hitler a combination of "table thumping" ability with few core ideas beyond the roar of the crowds, which then becomes his core ideas. The wall with Mexico, for instance. Did Trump really believe that? Almost certainly not. But as we've seen time and time again, Trump says something stupid or false and that becomes the new litmus for MAGAts.
Now, my reading of Hitler's rise is incomplete, but I don't think this tracks. Hitler very much had a program - some his, some from the others in the nascent Nazi Party. Both Trump and Hitler played the demagogue perfectly, but Trump's "policies" are really just the weird combination of prejudices he retains from the 1970s and '80s and whatever his crowds cheer to. My central critique of "Trump is a fascist" is precisely that fascism is programmatic and Trump is impulsive. The horrid people around Trump, however, absolutely have a program: Project 2025.
It's disorienting not knowing if America will rediscover its democratic spirit or even if we will be allowed to express that spirit in 2026. What happens if Trump and his minions actively try to end democratic elections? Not impede, but end? What happens as he continually defies court orders?
Trump can be horrific without being Hitler.
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