This post was inspired by a video shared with me, and by reporting done by McSweeney's. From a researcher of fascist regimes, here then are the 14 early warning signs of
fascism. Count them down with me…
1. Powerful and continuing nationalism
2. Disdain for human rights
3. Identification of enemies as a unifying cause
4. Supremacy of the military
Feb.,
2017: Dep. of Homeland Security floats the idea of using the military to round up
illegal immigrants.
Mar.,
2017: Makes it easier for the CIA to conduct drone strikes without military
oversight.
5. Rampant sexism
Accused of sexual assault and
harassment by:
Apr., 2016: Jill Harth
May, 2016: Temple Taggert
Jun., 2016: Cassandra Searles
Oct., 2016: Tasha Dixon
Oct., 2016: Mariah Billado
Oct., 2016: Rachel Crooks
Oct., 2016: Jessica Leeds
Oct., 2016: Jennifer Murphy
Oct., 2016: Mindy McGillivray
Oct., 2016: Natasha Stoynoff
Oct., 2016: Lisa Boyne
Oct., 2016: Kristin Andersen
Oct., 2016: Samantha Holvey
Oct., 2016: Summer Zervos
Oct., 2016: Cathy Heller
Oct., 2016: Karen Virginia
Oct., 2016: Jessica Drake
Oct., 2016: Ninni Laaksonen
Sep., 2017: Department of
Education tears down the laws to pursue sexual assault on campuses
Dec., 2017: Trump endorses Roy
Moore, who sexually abused teenage girls.
Sep., 2018: Pushes through the
Kavanaugh Supreme Court nomination, despite sexual assault case brought forward
by Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and others.
6. Controlled mass media
Feb., 2017: Calls the New York Times, CNN,
CBS, ABC, and NBC the enemy of the people.
7. Obsession with national security
Oct., 2017: Tries to swap DACA for more
border security agents, an end to sanctuary cities, harsher asylum rules, and
funding the border wall.
Apr.,
2018: Begins process to deploy the National Guard to the Southern border
Oct.,
2018: Sends federal troops to the Southern border
8. Religion and government intertwined
Feb., 2017: Trump says he wants to repeal
the Johnson amendment, baring churches and religious organizations from taking
political stances and remaining tax-exempt. He signs an executive order to
implement the policy leniently.
Jan., 2018: Opens the “Conscience and
Religious Freedom” branch of the Department of Health and Human Services.
9. Corporate power protected
10. Labor power suppressed
Mar., 2017: Signs a bill repealing the Fair
Pay and Workplace Safety act.
May, 2018: Three executive orders signed
to cut back union power and pay.
Apr., 2019: Trump tweets against labor unions
Apr., 2019: Trump tweets against labor unions
11. Disdain for intellectuals & the arts
Feb., 2020: Architects stand against Trump's executive order that all federal buildings be done in the classical style (as did Mussolini, Franco, and "a particular German").
Jan., 2020: Trump's budget calls for eliminating the National Endowment of the Arts, starting in 2021, and major cuts to the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. It is not the first budget he's proposed with these considerations.
Jul., 2020: Signs an executive order to create a statue garden with the provision: "All statues in the National Garden should be lifelike or realistic representations of the persons they depict, not abstract or modernist representations"
12. Obsession with crime & punishment
Feb., 2017: Appoints Jeff Sessions as Attorney General, long-time advocate for harsh criminal punishments, including for minor crimes.
Jul., 2020: Begins federal executions for
the first time in 17 years
13.
Rampant cronyism & corruption
Feb., 2017: White House officially markets Ivanka's brand
May, 2017: Jared and Nicole Meyer solicit Chinese investment in return for visas.
Jul., 2017: Ivanka takes Trump's place at G20 meetings.
Sep., 2017: Jared's inability to pass his security clearance comes to light.
Nov., 2017: Trump puts Eric's brother-in-law as Chief of Staff of the Dept. of Energy.
Feb., 2020: Public spending on Trump's private properties exceeds $20 million
Jun., 2020: Trump has officially spent 1/4 of his first term (not yet completed) at his private residences, including golf courses.
14.
Fraudulent elections
* * *
So. We're no longer in the realm of "hyperbole" or "hysteria". Trump's near-four years have been full of fascistic policies. He's said fascist things, exhibited fascist actions, and has used the law and powers of the Executive Branch as a tool for fascist ideology.
This fall is a simple referendum - fascism or no? I don't care what arguments you have about Biden. Virtually no argument could be strong enough outweigh "being in the grips of a fascist leader". Biden would have to be an actual serial killer to be worse than Trump - that's where the bar is set. Remember: even Stalin and Churchill were able to work together to stop fascism. It is the gravest threat, more than Marxism, anarchy, or anything else. The question has been simplified beyond that of any modern election: Fascism or no?
If you do not vote for Biden, you are okay with fascism.
As we've seen, Trump checks all fourteen boxes. We have, to quote the video, moved beyond "theory" at this point. And I didn't include any of his signals from before officially running for office. I even left out most of the things he did while running, from "shoot a person on Fifth Avenue" to inciting violence in his rallies - actions and statements common to dictators, not Presidents.
If you do not vote for Biden, you are okay with fascism.
There is no other alternative: not voting helps Trump stay in office. Voting for a write-in, or third party candidate, helps Trump. Remember: he's only President because, in 2016, enough people in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania voted for third party candidates to get him elected. They determined Trump's thin margin of victory. If they had voted for Clinton, Trump wouldn't be in office today. (Here are those numbers, again. Michigan: Clinton lost by 11,000 votes. 220,000 went to Gary Johnson and Jill Stein. Wisconsin: Clinton lost by 20,000 votes. 130,000 went to Johnson and Stein. Pennsylvania: Clinton lost by 50,000 votes. 195,000 went to Johnson and Stein.) Anything beyond actively supporting and voting for Biden, means that you support Trump.
If you do not vote for Biden, you are...a fascist.
The proof is abundant and clear, overwhelming - there is no excuse to call Trump, or his supporters, anything else. And if you're not trying to get rid of him - you are one of those supporters. Your silence is complicit. We know, from history, that not speaking out and trying to stop the march towards dictatorship is exactly how you turn Germans into Nazis. Or Americans into fascists.
Don't be a fascist. Vote for Joe Biden.
