Farewell To All That.
The Democracy that Almost Was, Is Dead.
“Just remember: what you’re seeing and what you're reading is not what’s happening.”
Donald J. Trump, July 24, 2018.
On an overpass on 405 highway in Los Angeles, California, three white banners were unfurled by six individuals with handkerchiefs over their mouths, with at least four of them giving the Sieg Heil salute. One banner said, “Kanye was right about The Jews”, and on the other banners, “Honk if you know”, and “John 8:44 and Rev 3:9.” The latter were two biblical passages used often to justify virulent antisemitism that leads to violence and mass murder.
Candidate Donald J. Trump ran on a platform of White Supremacy. Upon his entry into the White House, hate crimes surged, and have not yet abated. White supremacist propaganda continues to flood neighborhoods nationwide. Trump-led Republicans have mainstreamed the racist conspiracy, “replacement theory,” which had led to the murders of Jewish, Black, and Hispanic people by white nationalists.
Trump's false claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him and his refusal to concede has now mutated into the twisted creed that local, state, and congressional Republicans now abide by, if we win, we win, if we lose we win.
All of these actions have laid the groundwork for a totalitarian regime and the death of our democracy. As Hitler’s propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels said, “This will always remain one of the best jokes of democracy, that it gave its deadly enemies the means by which it was destroyed.”
One reason why Republicans have been so successful in utilizing fascist tactics is that much of the public and press do not recognize these tactics even when witnessing them. Even if they do recognize the tactics, they may not fully comprehend the catastrophic danger of totalitarianism. I hope this article will be a guide to the fascism that much of the Republican Party has embraced, and why it should never be acceptable or normalized by the press or the public. Understanding fascism and the danger it possesses is the only way we can potentially stop it.
This will be discussed using the framework Jason Stanley, Ph.D. outlined in “How Fascism Works”; Psychologist Ellis Freeman presented in “Conquering the man in the street; a psychological analysis of propaganda in war, fascism, and politics”; and the “Seven Propaganda Devices” outlined by Professor Clyde R. Miller.
Unreality
“Fascist politics replaces reasoned debate with fear and anger. Regular and repeated obvious lying is part of the process by which fascist politics destroys the information space. A fascist leader can replace truth with power, ultimately lying without consequence.” - Jason Stanley from “How Fascism Works.”
“Fake News.” “Fake Pollsters.” “Russia Hoax.” “Rigged election.” “Which Hunt.”
Trump casts dispersions on anyone and anything that does not fully support his objectives and lies. Trump wants his audience to know they could trust him because, according to him, he’s the “most honest human being god has ever created.”
Benito Mussolini stated, “You must believe me because I have the habit, it is the system of my life, of always and everywhere telling the truth.” Hitler echoed a similar sentiment, “A struggle between the truth and a lie is taking place. As always, the truth will emerge victorious.” Hitler, like Trump, and Mussolini, meant his version of the truth will emerge.
Trump’s continued intention is to show he’s infallible, above truth, above being held accountable, and therefore above the law. Hitler, Mussolini, and other authoritarians have long depended on gross distortions of reality by presenting their lies as the only acceptable “truth.”
Donald Trump spun America’s politics into unreality, into post-truth. As Professor Timothy Snyder wrote in On Tyranny. “Post-truth is pre-fascism.” Seventy percent of the world's population lives under a dictatorship. If much of our media and the public continue to tolerate the dangerous web of unreality Republicans are spinning, we will soon join those living under authoritarian regimes.
As Professor Mariam Mufti, specializing in democratization, stated, “Dictators, in general, tend to use propaganda to generate a false reality.”
The Mythic Past
“Fascist politics invokes a pure mythic past tragically destroyed…a glorious past has been lost by the humiliation brought on by globalism, liberal cosmopolitanism, and respect for “universal values” such as equality.” - Jason Stanley from “How Fascism Works.”
“Make America Great Again” is a succinct slogan recalling a mythic past. Donald Trump did not coin the phrase, and neither did Barry Goldwater, or Ronald Reagan but all of them meant it as a dog whistle, a racialized slogan, evoking a lost mythic past. A past where wealthy white men’s authority was never questioned and the only acceptable families were middle-and-upper-class white church-going heterosexuals.
Trump has successfully built a cult-like devotion by harnessing racial and gender resentment. Trump eased his followers' insecurities, frustrations, and failures by placing the blame squarely at the feet of immigrants, women, and racial and ethnic minorities. Trump accomplished this in part by dehumanizing immigrants (“These aren’t people. These are animals”), giving permission to kill Black protesters (“When the looting starts, the shooting starts.”), and to resent women full stop, (“You have to treat 'em like shit.”)
Trump sold the paranoia that half the Nation quietly believed, that racial and ethnic minorities and women were receiving special treatment and benefited from unequal rules that were impending white male progress. This of course was untrue. The vast majority of White males' voting rights and civil rights have never been impeded. The same can not be said for the rest of America. We’ve never had a fully enfranchised Democracy, which means we’ve never had a true democracy. Our democracy has always been aspirational. The moment some small progress is made towards Equality the politics of resentment roars its ugly head, claiming a “zero-sum game.” Meaning, if racial and ethnic minorities and women are being treated fairly, that must mean, white men, are getting the short end of the stick. This is all projection.
Projection
Propaganda experts Dr. Derek D. Rucker’s and Dr. Anthony R. Pratkanis examined Ellis Freeman’s analysis of Nazi propaganda, specifically the “influence tactic based on projection.” Freeman defined projection as “accusing another person of the negative traits and behaviors that one possesses and exhibits with the goal of deflecting blame away from one’s own misdeeds and toward the accused...its consequences can be socially devastating.” In other words, accusing someone of doing the very thing you’re actually doing, is disturbingly effective.
An example of projection is Tulsi Gabbard's statement announcing her departure from the Democratic party, “Truth is not subjective. I could no longer stay in a party that thinks the truth is whatever they say it is...”
While no politician or political party is immune from telling falsehoods, Tulsi Gabbard is telling us to suspend reality and forget that the Republican party has been openly hostile to science, credentialed experts, and facts.
The most detrimental projection came from Trump and MAGA Republicans accusing Democrats of stealing the election, as Trump and MAGA Republicans actually attempted to steal the election leading to the January 6th deadly insurrection.
Victimhood
“In fascist politics, the opposing notions of equality and discrimination get mixed up with each other…There is a crucial distinction, of course, between feelings of resentment and oppression and genuine inequality and discrimination…dominant group feelings of victimization at the prospect of sharing power equally with members of minority groups.” - Jason Stanley from “How Fascism Works.”
An aspect of projection is Victimhood.
“I am being attacked by the godless left because I said I’m a proud Christian Nationalist. These evil people are even calling me a Nazi because I proudly love my country and my God. The left has shown us exactly who they are. They hate America, they hate God, and they hate us.” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted in July.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has a history of promoting antisemitism, and conspiracy theories, harassing gun safety advocates, and her political opponent, and even kicking someone that walked in front of her. Marjorie Taylor Greene claims victimhood, but in actuality is a bully.
Indoctrination
Another example of projection comes from Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis, “Our school system is for educating kids, not indoctrinating kids.” DeSantis said those words as a justification for passing a new series of oppressive laws in Florida: Stop WOKE Act would prohibit instructors from teaching students about America's history of injustices, and the “Don’t Say Gay” bill would forbid discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in elementary schools. DeSantis also put his thumb on the scale to influence local school board elections to control future curricula.
Ron DeSantis is censoring the information teachers can deliver, and attempting to control the information kids have access to. DeSantis is deleting aspects of American history and reinventing it to support his white supremacist agenda. DeSantis is denying children their own agency of identity by pushing a singularly permitted white, Christian, heterosexual, and patriarchal education.
All of these fascist tactics of indoctrination were used by the Kim Dynasty of North Korea, Adolf Hitler, and Benito Mussolini.
Historian Dr. Katharina Schembs stated Mussolini’s “Italian Fascist regime from 1922 onwards was among the first to extensively organize youth and leisure in its striving to gain totalitarian control over society.”
Vladimir Putin’s senior Kremlin bureaucrat, Sergei Novikov, does not mince words on its objectives to indoctrinate children. “We need to know how to infect them with our ideology…Our ideological work is aimed at changing consciousness.”
The goals of fascist indoctrination include controlling thought, ensuring loyalty, and supporting a hierarchy that solely benefits the indoctrinator. Ron DeSantis, a Yale and Harvard-educated politician, understands the tools of propaganda and how to put them to use. DeSantis intrinsically understands that to cultivate fervent allegiance to a leader you must start by indoctrinating the youth.
Hierarchy
“Fascist ideology takes advantage of a human tendency to organize society hierarchically, and fascist politicians represent the myths that legitimize their hierarchies as immutable facts. Their principle justification of hierarchy is nature itself.” - Jason Stanley from “How Fascism Works.”
Gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake (R-AZ) wore black stiletto heels and a blue pencil dress. Lake stood vacuuming a red carpet that Donald Trump would appear on in just a few short hours. It was a display of fealty that any authoritarian would demand. Kari Lake was demonstrating her place in the hierarchy of constructed societal gender roles. Of course, this is hypocrisy. Lake is running to be the leader of Arizona’s government, and the Commander in Chief of Arizona's National Guard, not exactly the characteristic of subservient, “traditional”, womanhood. The danger? She is advocating for harmful and oppressive policies meant to cement hierarchies.
Kari Lake's performance was both an appeal to cishet Christian conservative men and a tacit command for other women to follow suit. Hierarchy is intrinsically anti-Equality, and Kari is advocating for inequality. This was also the philosophy of the Nazis, “Kinder, Küche, Kirche” or Children, Kitchen, Church. Joseph Goebbels said, “The best place for the woman to serve her people is in her marriage, in the family, in motherhood.”
Not only do fascists rely on organizing society hierarchically, but they insist hierarchies are “naturally” made by God. Further, fascists insist God have vested power in them to uphold these constructed hierarchies. This is also why Republicans are embracing Christian Fascism (e.g. Christofascism) to give themselves limitless permission to trample the rights of others. These Christofascist take away abortion access, LGBTQ Rights, and Civil Rights because they claim God has given permission to do so. It’s Christianity gone nuclear.
Further, Christofascism permits destruction, oppression, and death, in the name of God.
In Hitler’s Mein Kampf he states, “I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator: by defending myself against the Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord.” While Italy’s Benito Mussolini had a particular disdain for religion due to his strict Catholic upbringing, Mussolini, Hitler, The Kim Dynasty, and the Spanish Dictator Francisco Franco all used the church’s influence to help organize, indoctrinate, and control the masses. Christianity can also rehabilitate an image by giving the appearance of “being saved” and “washing away all levels of sins.”
Researcher Alfredo González-Ruibal said of Franco’s totalitarian regime, “Catholicism was key to the entire ideology of the regime. The idea was, we are going to torture you, we are going to kill you, but we are doing this because you are evil. You have to be punished, you have to suffer.”
This idealogy lead to millions being murdered. Yes, it can happen here too, because it already happened before, and it can again.
Cult of Personality
“Dictators like to build personality cults because it enables them to rule without always having to resort to force. It enables them to mesmerize the public to ensure that the public adores them. And to prevent threats from opponents.” - Dr. Natasha Ezrow
How does one build a personality cult the way Trump did with his MAGA cult? It wasn’t an accident.
It was by using the playbook Mussolini wrote, Hilter used, and Trump approved of and studied.
Clyde R. Miller was Professor at Columbia’s Teachers College during Mussolini's Fascist regime.
He wrote “seven propaganda devices” that are effective in creating a political personality cult. Trump isn’t the only one who studied Professor Miller’s propaganda devices. Newt Gingrich based much of his GOPAC literature on these propaganda devices.
The italicized notes are mine.
Name Calling: “The Radical Left.” “Do Nothing Democrats.” “Little Marco.” This is the main propaganda device Trump utilizes. Name-calling is effective because it allows the audience to participate and repeat the insults, which then become solidified as mottos].
“The propagandist conjures hate or fear by attaching unattractive labels “to those individuals, groups, nations, races, policies, practices, beliefs, and ideals which he would have us condemn and reject.” Examples of such stigmatizing names prone to use without clarification or analysis were "heretic" and “communist.”
Glittering Generalities: This is the idea behind Newt Gingrich’s GOPAC which was a training program for Conservative Candidates. He created “words of difference.” He trained his students to use words like “woke” for Democrats and “freedom” for Republicans. This way when they were quoted by the press, the media would repeat these words verbatim many times without the context of, “this is an opinion.” These associations would then become subliminal in the public’s consciousness.
“The propagandist associates his or her program with “virtue words” such as “truth, freedom, honor, liberty, social justice, public service, the right to work, loyalty, progress, democracy, the American way, and Constitution defender.” As with name-calling, the idea was to make people form a thoughtless judgment under the influence of an emotional impression.”
Transfer: Trump did this by picking Mike Pence as his Vice President. Mike Pence was respected among white Christian evangelicals, a sizeable chunk of Republican Voters. Pence has also been an elected official, this assured people that even though Trump had zero experience as a legislator, he would pick those with seasoned credentials. This was, of course, not true.
“Transfer is a device by which the propagandist carries over the authority, sanction, and prestige of something we respect and revere to something he would have us accept. For example, most of us respect and revere our church and our nation. If the propagandist succeeds in getting the church or nation to approve a campaign on behalf of some program, he thereby transfers its authority, sanction, and prestige to that program. Thus, we may accept something which otherwise we might reject.”
Testimonial: Trump used Kanye West, who was not known at the time as a Right Wing conservative, to give him a bit of clout. Trump also made sure to be seen more speaking with religious leaders to appear devout.
“The testimony of a seemingly independent person, even a known actor, is seen as more trustworthy. Well-known celebrities and public personalities are trusted by their fans, even when it is known they are being paid for their testimony. Experts, clerics, police, scientists, and others – even when unknown – will be respected for their titles and credentials, and their presumed authority is rarely questioned. Use people who are like the people whose support you need.”
Plain Folk: Brian Kemp, Ted Cruz, and other Republicans that come from privilege and/or went to elite universities, dress in clothing that typically shows them to be “good old boys” that enjoy “huntin’ and fishin’.” This, of course, is cosplaying “plain folk”. They are financially well off, millionaires in fact. Donald Trump does not pretend to be “plain folk” through his clothing, rather he does this through his speech. Trying his best to be a New York “tough guy,” though his physical abuses are usually targeted at women which are well documented.
“Making the leader seem ordinary increases trust and credibility. Wear ordinary clothes. Not flashy, even if expensive or formal. In “informal” settings, jeans, slacks, plaid or solid color shirts, and sports coats without a tie. Always be clean. Dress like your audience. When visiting the troops, look military but without displaying rank. Use simple words, simple grammar, pauses, and short sentences. Speak as if thinking up your words, on-the-spot. Use, but don’t overuse, the language of your audience. Occasionally inject minor speech errors, elisions, and incorrect grammar. You may not be absolutely one “of them,” but you completely understand, empathize with, and support them. You are ordinary, like them, but no fool.”
Card Stacking: This is the second most utilized tactic by Trump and MAGA Republicans.
“The propagandist uses overemphasis and underemphasis to put a calculated spin on his or her ideas or proposals. Distortions and omissions throw up a smoke screen such that the audience forgets inconvenient information and embraces half-truths. Build a highly-biased case for your position. In gambling or in magic card tricks, accomplished card manipulators have the ability to “stack the deck,” even as they shuffle the cards, and cause certain cards to appear (or not appear) when and where they want them. Card-stacking is the intentional biasing of an argument, presenting only supporting evidence, burying or discrediting opposing evidence. “Cherry-pick” your facts, using only those seeming to support you, and ignore contradicting facts. Present opinion as fact.”
Bandwagon: This is at the crux of the MAGA movement. The crowd is focused on Nationalism, Right Wing, Christianity, and Heterosexuals, that all center white supremacy. You don’t have to be white to be part of MAGA, but you will be supporting white supremacy.
“Here the propagandist works to have people “follow the crowd,” to accept an idea or plan because “everybody's doing it.” Focus often is on appealing to ties of nation, religion, race, region, sex, or occupation. In other words, “Pump up the value of “joining the party.” The term ‘bandwagon’ originated when the Temperance Movement drove a wagon around town picking up drunks. Climbing “on the wagon” meant giving up alcohol.”
What comes after Republicans finish breaking Democracy?
Professor Ruth Ben-Ghiat said, “One thing that [authoritarians] really know how to do is become the profits of doom… Fascists hate democracy, but they accepted they had to work within some of its strictures.”
Republicans will pull out all of the stops nationwide to win this midterm in state houses, school boards, and Congress. They are working the system like a boxer works the refs to win. They are talking about how bad inflation is without being truthful about why it’s occurring.
Dictators have long used or created a national crisis to come into power. That is what Republicans are doing right now. Once they finish taking over state and local governments, they will be in a position, to make sure they never lose another election. They will pick the person they will rally around. They want it to be Trump, but if Trump's legal troubles drag polling numbers down, they will consolidate around someone else, most likely Ron DeSantis. The road stops that were in place to prevent Trump and his MAGA Republicans from stealing an election will be gone. If DeSantis loses by just a small margin, he will declare victory. The Right Wing majority on SCOTUS will not interfere. The Democracy that was aspirational, will be no more. What happens next?
Typically what happens first in an authoritarian regime is “the carrot and the stick.”
Authoritarians look to win the public over by doing something “nice” like making a public water park! (that will breakdown); building new schools! (to brainwash children into worshiping the ‘dear leader’); give people land to grow a crop! (while starving them); give women the right to vote! (but also rape them). After those “carrots” here comes the “stick.”
The authoritarian leader will implement a series of oppressive laws. After all, authoritarians don’t need any votes to pass their laws. For example, it is illegal to be gay in over sixty countries around the world. DeSantis and other MAGA Republicans across America have been openly hostile towards the LGBTQ community, this is a group they would most likely target for criminalization, conversion therapy, and other torture techniques. (Yes, I am sick to my stomach writing that.) Republicans will also have a zero migrant tolerance policy unless they are from European countries. We only have to look at the invective and violence Italy’s newest fascist regime has unleashed on African migrants to see what brutality will be inflicted on Hispanic migrants just searching for an opportunity for a better life. The fascist regime will install a Secret Police Force (and/or a Morality Policy) to enforce these new “laws.” The job of the Secret Police is to intimidate the public, keep the public in line, and keep tabs on the public. Any member of the public that displays disloyalty to the regime is incarcerated or killed. The technology that we have will make it easier than ever to be able to collect data, as most of our data has already been acquired by multiple tech corporations. This is no conjecture, China’s President (for life) Xi Jinping has created a “Surveillance State” over all of his citizens. This would be easy to replicate here in America. Some tech leaders, like Elon Musk, have already shown their affection for authoritarian leaders. One requirement for a “successful” totalitarian regime is having elites in their back pocket funding their oppression. Another requirement? State television. State TV is a place to continuously promulgate propaganda. DeSantis and Trump already have state media in place from Fox News, OAN, and Sinclair broadcasting. Then there is social media. Mussolini used the radio to get his propaganda messaging across, and now Trump and DeSantis use Social Media. It’s where “the public square is.”
In less than 100 days, the 118th Congress will be sworn in. As of this moment, control of Congress is a toss-up, with Democrats most likely losing the House. If and when MAGA Republicans come back into power the dream of democracy will dissolve. Blame will, of course, be placed on Democrats for not messaging well enough. As Mark Twain once said, “A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.” Republicans have sold their voters a bill of goods, much of legacy media has normalized their fascist tactics, and here we are. As Polish philosopher, Leszek Kołakowski, said, “In politics, being deceived is no excuse.” He is right. History has given us lessons, that too many have ignored, at all our peril.