News reports indicate some of Trump's former top staffers contend Trump admires Hitler and Right-Wing authoritarians? Is Trump a Nazi Fascist or a Conservative Populist who is just using Fascist techniques? Does the difference matter?
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Trump's style and rhetoric have raised concerns among some about democratic norms and institutions and personal corruption, just like the European fascists of the the early 20th century. Donald Trump's claims about the 2020 election being fraudulent have been widely discussed and debunked. After the election, he and many of his supporters asserted that widespread voter fraud occurred, particularly in key battleground states. These claims have been investigated and rejected by multiple courts, election officials, and independent audits.
Donald Trump has faced various allegations and investigations related to corruption and unethical behavior throughout his career, both during and after his presidency, that make some question whether he wants to use the Presidency to exploit the office for his own personal gain or simply to keep himself out of jail. These include:
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Business Practices: Accusations have been made regarding misleading financial statements, tax evasion, and questionable business dealings, particularly related to his real estate ventures.
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Emoluments Clause: Critics have argued that Trump violated the Constitution's Emoluments Clause by receiving payments from foreign governments through his hotels and properties.
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Election Interference: Investigations have looked into whether Trump or his associates attempted to influence the 2020 election outcome, particularly concerning interactions with Ukraine and the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021.
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Legal Challenges: Various lawsuits and legal actions have been initiated against him, including civil and criminal cases related to his business practices and actions while in office.
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34-Count Felony Conviction: Trump was found guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in relation to an alleged attempt to pay off a porn actress who he had an affair with (while his wife was pregnant).
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Sex Assault Liability: Trump was found legally liable of sexual abuse and defamation by a jury in relation to a lawsuit from a woman who had accused him of sexual assault.
Trump has engaged in anti-democratic, racial insensitive and inflammatory rhetoric that has attracted strong support from far right in a manner that has simultaneously pushed away some stalwart Republicans like Fred Upton, Adam Kinzinger, Liz and Dick Cheney. It is not uncommon to see Confederate or Nazi flags being carried or emblazoned upon the clothing of Donald Trump and MAGA supporters. “Racism has been the achilles heel of American democracy since its founding as a racialized project.. These are truths that MAGA extremists want to erase.
But it is not just history that MAGA wants to silence and it isn’t just MAGA that has acquiesced. Because we have not normalized the important conversation about our racial history and its present consequences, the dangerous nexus between anti-democratic forces in our nation and its racist foundations is among the least talked about dimensions of our slide into fascism.
The anti-woke assault on race-conscious history and knowledge and against the hard-fought policies to promote diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is extremely dangerous, not only to people of color, but to stakeholders of racial justice and democracy. Despite the intentional misdirection, the war against woke is not just a war against critical race theory, but it is a war against Black history and the entire infrastructure built out of the civil rights movement. It is a war against our multiracial democracy that too many are unable to name. And because assaults that cannot be seen or named cannot be fought, the consequences are disastrous.”
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Using immigrants (legal or illegal) as a culprit, Trump engages in inflammatory rhetoric that fans the flames of hate. He casually spread false rumors that Haitian immigrants in Ohio were eating cats. On a recurring basis he has called migrants from Mexico “rapists” or “criminals”. On October 24, 2024, at a political rally in Arizona, Trump decried immigrants once again in blaming them for allegedly being a negative impact on society, “We're a dumping ground. We're like a -- we're like a garbage can for the world. That's what, that's what's happened to us. We're like a garbage can,"
The elements of Trump’s behavior have been there for several years. We may never know what caused General John Kelly and the other close Trump advisors to call out Trump’s fascist, authoritarian tendencies, but hopefully the late campaign revelation is gives just the right nudge to a voter on the fence and pushes them away from Trump and to Kamala Harris.
