With all the arguments over whether MAGA Republicans are fascists, I reread William Shirer’s “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich” to see how much the rise of Hitler and the rise of MAGA smell similar.
Conclusion: They do. This thread lists 10 ways. Please take a look.
1. A big lie about treachery is used to foment resentment.
Nazis: We didn’t really lose World War I. It was a “stab in the back” by Jews and other "November criminals."
MAGA: We didn’t really lose the 2020 election. It was a “steal” by politicians and Blacks in big cities.
2. There’s an obsession with purity of the culture.
Nazis: “Racial mixture” was a threat to Aryan culture, Hitler wrote.
MAGA: “Great replacement theory” says immigrants threaten white culture.
3. Chaos is something to be exploited, not addressed.
Nazis: Economic distress is a great political opportunity.
MAGA: Economic distress is a great political opportunity.
4. The super-rich bankroll the right-wing seizure of power.
Nazis: Thanks to I.G. Farben, Deutsche Bank, Thyssen, Krupp, etc.
MAGA: Thanks to the Mercers, Uihleins, DeVos, Thiel, etc.
5. Some people think the fascist threat is overblown.
Nazis: While Hitler posed a major threat, some said he "ceased to be a political danger.” (2 weeks later, he was chancellor.)
MAGA: While Trump poses a major threat, many people think it’s “just politics,” no worries.
6. There’s a cult of personality.
Nazis: The German army made a pledge of loyalty to Hitler personally.
MAGA: Trump’s supporters bill him as “the most moral president” in U.S. history.
7. Christianity is used to legitimize the movement.
Nazis: “The party stands for positive Christianity.”
MAGA: Trump is described as the “Chosen One” protecting American Christianity.
8. Books are the enemy.
Nazis: Any book that “acts subversively on our future” must be burned.
MAGA: “I think we should throw those books in a fire,” says a Virginia school board member.
9. An independent news media is the enemy.
Nazis: Any newspaper that “offends the honor and dignity of Germany” must be banned.
MAGA: The press is the “enemy of the people.”
10. Educators are pressured to be politically compliant.
Nazis: Teachers took an oath to “be loyal and obedient to Adolf Hitler.”
MAGA: Florida’s DeSantis accuses teachers of “indoctrination” and pressures them to avoid references to America’s racist history and LGBTQ people.
I'm not saying that MAGA will end up as horrifically as Nazism. I am saying that America 2022 feels too much like Germany 1932, and I don't want to take the risk of watching MAGA cultism play out. We have to stop it now.
Why did Twitter put a “sensitive” warning on this thread? Who knows? My only theory is that it has a “hateful symbol”—a swastika on the cover of Shirer’s book about Nazism.
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The New York Times keeps putting vague headlines on stories about MAGA fascism. It happens so often that I don’t think it’s accidental. A proper, direct headline for this story would be:
“Trump’s Rhetoric Gets More Radical and Divisive.”
That’s what the story says.
Here’s a gift link for the NYT story by @chashomans. It’s generally an accurate and alarming story about the Trump threat to end democracy. nytimes.com/2024/04/27/mag…
@chashomans One part of the story is weak sauce, however. NYT seems to give Trump credit for not attempting a 2nd coup after the 1st one failed, as if that proves he’s not a full-fledged fascist. Which is ridiculous. I think it means he wanted to stay out of prison and try again later.
🧵
Ginni Thomas is still getting away with her J6 coup plotting.
Clarence Thomas is still ruling on cases involving his insurrectionist wife.
Steve Bannon is still out of jail and doing a podcast.
🧵
Gen. Michael Flynn, who was pardoned for his treachery, is still promoting his anti-government message, is still collecting his military pension, and is promoting a new movie.
Fox News is still lying after paying a $787M settlement for its past lies.
🧵
NBC’s news execs are still employed despite trying to hire fascist liar Ronna McDaniel for a $300K job.
Rep. Ralph Norman is still in Congress and seeking re-election despite revelations that he secretly urged Trump to declare martial law to stay in office in January 2021.
Today’s Trump trial testimony reminds us of how mainstream media – including the New York Times, Washington Post and Politico – were badly played by Trump in 2016. An example: The National Enquirer’s Trump-inspired hoax linking Ted Cruz’s dad to the JFK assassination.🧵1/7
The Enquirer’s David Pecker testified that the tabloid faked a photo of Ted Cruz’s dad with Lee Harvey Oswald to help Trump’s campaign in 2016. He said the tabloid “mashed” 2 photos together. “That’s how that story was prepared — created, I would say.” 2/7 nbcnews.com/politics/donal…
Look at how the New York Times wrote it up in May 2016:
“Donald Trump Accuses Ted Cruz’s Father of Associating With Kennedy Assassin”
Cruz’s denial was left out of the headline, and wasn’t mentioned until *the 7th paragraph* of the story! 3/7 archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.co…
A few days before Biden’s inauguration in 2021, Rep. Ralph Norman secretly urged the White House to declare martial law to keep Trump in office.
In the last 15 months, the New York Times has mentioned Norman in 44 stories without recalling that fact.
That’s coup amnesia.🧵1/6
The latest New York Times mention of the traitorous Ralph Norman was published today — with nothing about his text suggesting that Trump enlist the military in a coup in 2021. To the Times, Norman is just a GOP congressman doing GOP congressman things. 2/6 nytimes.com/2024/04/18/us/…
Ralph Norman’s martial law text was revealed in late 2022 by @TPM. Being a not-bright person, Norman spelled martial law as “Marshall law” in his text. But it’s not funny: Norman was pushing for a Trump-directed military takeover of the government. 3/6 talkingpointsmemo.com/feature/mark-m…
Republican politicians keep spewing violent rhetoric. Not all voters are aware of this, so we must keep warning them. And we mustn’t normalize it. The GOP’s gun-waving craziness endangers our country. This thread includes some shocking examples. 1/13
This week, Sen. Tom Cotton called for people to “take matters into their own hands” if protesters block roads. Cotton wants protesters thrown off bridges. He said if protesters glue their hands to cars, they should have “their skin ripped off.” 2/13
Also this week, Republican Senate candidate Kari Lake called on supporters to “strap on a Glock” to be ready for an “intense” election season. 3/13 nbcnews.com/politics/2024-…
Many Americans still underestimate Donald Trump. They think he’s a cartoon character in a show called politics. They don’t think a Trump victory this year would harm their lives. They’re wrong. In this thread I look at off-base predictions about Trump over the years. 1/15
Trump was such a joke in 2011 that Comedy Central broadcast a roast of him. Seth MacFarlane said it was “fucking delusional” that Trump talked about running for president. 2/15
Also in 2011, Steve Kornacki (yes, the NBC numbers guy) wrote a guest column for the NY Daily News, saying Trump’s birther lie against Obama was a publicity stunt and Trump was too smart “to follow through on his threats to seek the White House.” 3/15