We hear so often now: Authoritarian, Dictator, Tyrant, even Fascist labels applied to Trump, and they couldn’t be more true. Maybe it’s time to SPELL out the specifics of what that means. Otherwise, to swing state ears, it could sound like more vague hyperbole to describe a guy who is just, y’know, kinda forceful, that’s all.
Do we have current models we can draw upon? Turkey is a prime example, not to mention aspects of Poland and even Hungary. And then we can fill in with the steps of 1930’s Germany and Italy.
Yes, much of this recently did occur in Turkey. Erdogan won another term several years back, became full time strongman, and then took revenge on his “deep state” list across the board.
1. Locking up political opponents.
I fear Trump will simply point and call them treasonous, and that’s enough for Barr to move in on them. But they will go to court and have lawyers, right? With more judges on Trump’s payroll, they will be mostly convicted and sentenced as Trump wishes. Or at least rot in Jail a long while until it gets to a Supreme Court that has even more Trump appointees.
Imagine high profile Democrats, past and present, labeled as enemies of the state and thrown in prison. It can happen I say.
1a. Release and pardon of Trump thugs like Bannon, Flynn and Manafort, etc…, of course.
2. Interference / shutting down outlets of Free Media. I fear Papers like the NY TImes, Washington Post either shut down or restaffed with Trumpers. Many of the major outlets either gone or sounding the same. Our own versions of Pravda.
2a. I’d love to ask FOX if they’d really like this: to have former competitors (CNN, MSNBC) forced to sound similar to them. No more reason to choose Fox over another network.
Item: Trump recently replaced Voice of America staff with his own. We’ll need a Radio-Free-America to counter what becomes: Iron Curtain America.
3. High profile captains of Industry who clash with Trump, made to disappear (or victim to Trump contrived takeovers.) Don’t tell me no. He’s made moves and noises about this.
4. Citizen far-right militias (that are clashing with Protesters now), sanctioned to mete out their own vigilante justice on the street. Immune to prosecution. Held up as true patriots as they act as Stazi and Brown Shirts on the rest of us. Isn’t that the case with Kyle Rittenhouse?
4a. The Military and Police become Trump’s private force against the people. Protests labeled as only violence. The Church Photo Op was but a preview. Trump tweeted in early June that maybe it’s time to learn from China about how they shut down Tienanmen Square.
5. Trump as one man government; the congress only a rubber stamp. Any who arise to speak out (either Party), I fear could be locked up as a deep state traitor.
5a. Imagine the “executive orders” that would flow.
6. Trump declares himself president for Life. Who can stop him? (He even joked when Xi did it, that maybe it’s time to try that here. No kidding.)
The above is just chapter one. It’s not fantasy anymore.
EVERY ITEM ON THIS LIST HAS A PAPER, VOICE or TWEET TRAIL WE CAN POINT TO. And speaking of Paper, that’s all the Constitution is becoming. The Hatch act-RNC violation is now: so what?
We need to let swing staters know that with voting for one thing (less “violence” with Trump), they are in for the whole package. Some won’t care, I know.
But let’s at least get the media asking Trump about this in detail, point blank. Jonathan Swan, where are you?
Am I over the top here?