I’m no fascism expert, but he literally hits every one of the 14 points in Ur-fascism. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ur-Fascism

No more or less than those who come before.

I think we see more obvious fascist indicators because conditions have advanced to the point where protecting the American state and its apparatus can only take those forms.

I’d say Trump II is more similar to FDR than Nazi Germany or Fascist Italy. I’m going to list some things here, it may sound familiar to what Trump’s doing now:

Putting the “foreign enemy” in camps to secure the country - FDR. Looking to revitalize American manufacturing and awaken the “sleeping giant” at home - FDR. Consolidation of power to the executive and “ignoring the courts”, including the supreme court - FDR. Believing one can do no wrong if the ultimate goal is to “save the country” - FDR. Using outside advisors (Trump uses Witkoff) for key negotiations with Russia because you believe that the insiders are comprimised - FDR. Looking to fight a Naval war in the Pacific - FDR. Running for a third term - FDR.

Social conservatism or reactionary ideology does not necessarily equal fascist. Trump is more an amalgamation of ideas from various US presidents that were generally popular or considered influential if they weren’t popular, from McKinley to FDR to a “reverse Nixon” to Reagan. A “greatest hits collection” of US presidents and ideas. In essence, he is the most American president that has ever existed, a distillation of Americana. If you define fascism like that, then yes you can argue that Trump is fascist. But I still think it’s useful to differentiate from pre and post WW2 Pax Americana and Hitlerite fascism. The closest Trump got to the latter was when he ordered the police to clear out the protestors so he could do a photo op with the Bible in front of a church during the BLM protests in 2020.

Arguably yes, arguably no. I’m not convinced it’s a particularly useful way to think about things tbh

He’s the most American man in existence, if that looks like fascism, well I’m not going to disagree with you.

I’m gonna say no he wasn’t (past tense), he was an opportunist that used others to seek position and power and ego.

The fascism came through being the path of lowest resistance to what he wants. If an alternative non-fascist path had less resistance he could have been the woke president, he’s exactly that uncommitted to any cause, he is a media figure who will mold himself into any shape that would be successful. He molded himself into the fascist because it ultimately was the easiest way to reconcile the contradictions in the right, the fighting factions previously divided now show very little sign of division. These contradictions were not resolved in his first term and he was not wholly a fascist at that time but he certainly is now.

What this means ideologically however is to be determined by those around him, not by him, he is a true marionette to capitalists around him.

He’s a rabid Zionazi who arms, funds, and surrounds himself with other Zionazis. The ecpnomic heads of this country are fascists. Inwardly, outwardly, by policy, by decree. Fascists. He is of that class and he would not be where he is if not being an abject fascist. Black bagging people at the bequest of other fascists feeling being hurt. Race purity stuff. Attacks on acedemia, the arts, intellectualism. You could go down the list of Ur-Fascism and easily start checking off the boxes.

Just like isn’t real’s problem isn’t so much Bibi - America’s problem isn’t so much Trump. You wouldn’t have Trump if it wasn’t for deliberately working the system to prop him up on bequest most likely of Wall Street itself.

Removing one head of Hydra and two more pop up because it is systemic. All the way to it’s founding and if we want to be more modern see the Buisnees Plot revealed by

Trump is fascist because his words, deeds, policy, and set menu illusioned choice is a direct reflection of the fascist system and instiutions that put him there.

Same as with same as with same as with and and and. before. And I’l even toss in there for enabling fascists and fascism too.

Anybody trying to define fascism based on the very specific characteristics of Italy, Japan, or Germany is going to run into reasons to call trump a fascist or not and be able to debate. Like the 14 from ur fascism. I don’t think that’s a useful way to spend our time. I think that the definition of “Actually Existing Fascism” from redsails is the one that is useful, and there Trump can really only be considered the current captain of a success of fascism. The US has been fascist (in expropriating from its shifting periphery) since it’s inception, and managed survived the birthing pains. The “classic” fascist examples failed to become the dominant force of their own existence and thus failed. So Trump is just as much a fascist as every other American president; he just partially shifted the periphery to be an internal enemy instead of external.

Western definitions always find that shift mega-important, but I think Cesaire’s famous quote (“fascism=colonialism turned inward”) was dialectically supposed to mean that all the expropriation at the periphery has been fascism too, not that fascism should be defined by its inward turn. That would only make the definition of fascism be an easy way to hide the oppression of the 3rd world as better than oppression of the 1st world. We Marxists should not accept that.

So yes, his fascism aims slightly different than the democrats, but of course he’s a fascist

I lean towards the “No” side and I’m mostly informed by Daniel Bessner’s work and Richard Evans’ book “The coming of the third reich” about the rise of the Nazi movement, that goes for Trump as well as other far-right parties around nowadays. The center argument against I think is the lack of mass politics in these countries (not the case in Israel and maybe India), and that most people who use fascist just mean it as a term of insult for the right, like calling social democrats “communist”.

Danny’s been on some chapo episodes, did that Hinge Points show with Matt and does a global politics podcast called American Prestige.

If anyone wants a quick rehash of the debate there’s this podcast called Spaßbremse (it’s mostly about german politics from a left perspective, in english) and the host, which used to lean “No” and now leans “Yes”, recently (past 2 episodes I think) brought on Danny to argue for No, and then in another episode gave the right of response to John Ganz to argue for “Yes”, I recommend those 2 episodes because each are under an hour long and I think Ganz presented the strongest case for “Yes” I’ve seen so far. I would like if the host brought Danny back to respond.

He became classically fascist when he put all the other billionaires on his team. This is the distinction Mussolini himself made, the capitalists must be in the decision making room, no proxies.

I never finished r.paxtons anatomy of fascism but yeah I’d argue he is. But I call libs fascists to the point my friends have told me i need to dial it back.

I cant find the quote I’m looking for to reference, but there’s a fascist inside all of us and we have to fight them or whatever

I’m not sure he’s anything. I feel like he’s operating on a combination of base instinct, desperation, self interest, and whatever unholy drug cocktail they’re using to keep his neurons firing.

I think anyone with a billion dollars is a fascist. You don’t get that rich without stepping on people.

https://www.openculture.com/2024/11/umberto-ecos-list-of-the-14-common-features-of-fascism.html

• The cult of tradition. “One has only to look at the syllabus of every fascist movement to find the major traditionalist thinkers. The Nazi gnosis was nourished by traditionalist, syncretistic, occult elements.”

• The rejection of modernism. “The Enlightenment, the Age of Reason, is seen as the beginning of modern depravity. In this sense Ur-Fascism can be defined as irrationalism.”

• The cult of action for action’s sake. “Action being beautiful in itself, it must be taken before, or without, any previous reflection. Thinking is a form of emasculation.”

• Disagreement is treason. “The critical spirit makes distinctions, and to distinguish is a sign of modernism. In modern culture the scientific community praises disagreement as a way to improve knowledge.”

• Fear of difference. “The first appeal of a fascist or prematurely fascist movement is an appeal against the intruders. Thus Ur-Fascism is racist by definition.”

• Appeal to social frustration. “One of the most typical features of the historical fascism was the appeal to a frustrated middle class, a class suffering from an economic crisis or feelings of political humiliation, and frightened by the pressure of lower social groups.”

• The obsession with a plot. “Thus at the root of the Ur-Fascist psychology there is the obsession with a plot, possibly an international one. The followers must feel besieged.”

• The enemy is both strong and weak. “By a continuous shifting of rhetorical focus, the enemies are at the same time too strong and too weak.”

• Pacifism is trafficking with the enemy. “For Ur-Fascism there is no struggle for life but, rather, life is lived for struggle.”

• Contempt for the weak. “Elitism is a typical aspect of any reactionary ideology.”

• Everybody is educated to become a hero. “In Ur-Fascist ideology, heroism is the norm. This cult of heroism is strictly linked with the cult of death.”

• Machismo and weaponry. “Machismo implies both disdain for women and intolerance and condemnation of nonstandard sexual habits, from chastity to homosexuality.”

• Selective populism. “There is in our future a TV or Internet populism, in which the emotional response of a selected group of citizens can be presented and accepted as the Voice of the People.”

• Ur-Fascism speaks Newspeak. “All the Nazi or Fascist schoolbooks made use of an impoverished vocabulary, and an elementary syntax, in order to limit the instruments for complex and critical reasoning.”

To me he meets all fourteen criteria of ur fascism.

edit: Or as Mussolini defined fascism it’s the merger of state and corporate power. Having Silicon Valley as a co-president is structurally fascist.

I don’t think Trump is intelligent to have an ideology, but he enables fascism regardless.