An expert who studies authoritarianism and fascism said Donald Trump’s rhetoric about criminalizing dissent is familiar, and could carry serious implications for the country if he’s elected president, reported NBC News.
“This is out of the autocratic playbook. As autocrats
consolidate their power once they’re in office, anything that threatens their
power, or exposes their corruption, or releases information that’s harmful to
them in any way becomes illegal,” said Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a historian and
professor at New York University who wrote the 2020 book “Strongmen: From
Mussolini to the Present.”
“He’s actually rehearsing, in a sense, what he would be
doing as head of state, which is what Orban does, Modi is doing, Putin has long
done,” she said, referring to the leaders of Hungary, India and Russia,
respectively. “Just as there’s a divide now because of this brainwashing about
who is a patriot and who is a criminal about Jan. 6, right? In the same way,
telling the truth in any area — journalists, scientists, even people like me,
anybody who is engaged in objective inquiry, prosecutors, of course — they
become criminal elements and they need to be shut down.”
Some Harris voters say Trump is channeling dictators.
“He reminds me of Hitler and the rise to power,” said Dan
Geiger, a retired Pittsburgh resident. “The more he lies the more it’s accepted
by his faithful followers.”
Trump has suggested investigations involving his conduct are
illegitimate under the law and vowed revenge against the prosecutors who oversee them. He
has also claimed, with no evidence, that President Joe Biden directed those
prosecutions, even the state indictments he has no authority over.
Upon early revelations of his New York indictment, Trump said the prosecutor “ILLEGALLY LEAKED” it. And the probe into his 2016 campaign’s ties to Russia? “They illegally spied on my campaign.”
Trump voters have mixed views on revenge
Trump rallied a raucous crowd Wednesday in Scranton,
Pennsylvania, launching personal attacks on Harris and drawing jeers and boos
from a sea of red MAGA-hatted supporters as he spoke of the “enemy from within”
— government officials with whom he’s clashed. He mentioned as one example Rep.
Adam Schiff, D-Calif., which sparked a “lock him up!” shout from one supporter.
But some of Trump’s own voters told NBC News they disapprove
of the revenge-based themes in his campaign while still planning to support him
because of their concerns about the economy and immigration.
Walter Buckman, a Scranton native, said he’s supporting
Trump because of his views on immigration and the economy. But the
self-described Catholic is “absolutely not” on board with his rhetoric about
exacting revenge and getting even.
“The way to get even with anybody is to change the economy.
Getting even should not be in the playbook,” he said. “Is revenge a good thing?
It’s not a good thing.”
Debbie Hendrix, a Pennsylvanian who attended the Trump rally
donning a “MAGA” hat, said she’s excited to vote for Trump a third time. But
even she is put off by his talk of retribution.
“I don’t agree with that. I think people like ‘Drain the
swamp,’” she said, but in her view that doesn’t mean personally going after his
critics. “I don’t think he should sink to their level.”
Sometimes, Trump launches the claim of illegality plausibly.
In October 2023, he said advocates in Colorado are trying to “illegally
remove my name from the ballot” over his role in Jan. 6, a case he fought and won at the U.S. Supreme Court. More
recently, he has said people who get caught cheating in the election will be
prosecuted, essentially restating existing law.
Fetterman: ‘A menu of dumb s---’
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., who is campaigning in
conservative rural areas for Harris, said Trump is no stranger to “bizarre
ramblings,” but warned that it doesn’t demotivate his voters.
“That’s just a menu of dumb shit that he always says,”
Fetterman said. “I don’t even pay attention to those kinds of things. Most
people don’t really take it at face value or whatever.”
It’s important for everyone who’s troubled by it to turn out
and vote for Harris, he said, criticizing the “uncommitted” movement,
supporters of perennial Green Party nominee Jill Stein, and others who abhor
Trump but could waste their vote.
“If you are not 100% voting for Harris, then you are either
directly or indirectly helping Trump,” Fetterman said. “Go ahead and try that
again. That’s what happened in 2016 when people threw their votes away on that
dope Jill Stein.”
Trump has responded to criticisms of his authoritarian
rhetoric by repeatedly claiming Democrats are the real fascists and accusing
them of “weaponizing” the government against him. His campaign didn't return
messages seeking comment for this article.
If he’s elected, could Trump actually succeed at
centralizing power for himself, in a system built on checks and balances that
was often successful at restraining him during his first term.
“That’s the big question,” Ben-Ghiat said, adding that it
depends partly on his ability to impose party fealty, intimidate critics and
install competent bureaucrats who are effective at using levers of power to
advance his personal aims.
“It is about criminalizing dissent,” she said. “There is a
method to his madness in that he has taken people on a journey of
indoctrination.”
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