The F – Word
Even with all the evidence of voter suppression, flouting of the laws, and a failed coup, why the reluctance to use the word Fascism?
The Republican party is openly advancing Fascism, and America is quietly going along. Ignoring the warnings, we accepted the USA/Patriot Act, which unfettered can trample on the rights of every American. One example was the expansion of private records’ searches through a third party. Before the Patriot Act and the establishment of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) in 1978, there was no blanket exception to the Fourth Amendment requirement for probable cause when the purpose of a wiretap or search was to gather foreign intelligence. The FISA Court held that probable cause could be suspended because ostensibly, searches would not be conducted to gather evidence to put someone on trial but for security purposes.
FISA was the forerunner to the most significant and prolonged foreign policy bungle in history. Republicans often warn of the slippery slope, but this toe-dip into Fascism was an avalanche. The snowball was scooped up and eventually led to a twenty-year war in the Middle East. On the GOP’s continued march into Fascism, they found a slick charismatic mouthpiece in Donald Trump. Mr. Trump berated the significance of the press, separating America from access to the truth. Now, having gotten a taste of blood, the Fascism they have sought since Ronald Reagan is quickly coming into fruition.
Fascism cannot exist without the acquiescence of the citizenry, and Republican doctrine became whatever Donald Trump demands. When correspondent Lesly Stahl reported she asked Mr. Trump; ‘…why do you keep hammering at this [press]?’” Trump’s answer was dangerous, “And he said: ‘You know why I do it? I do it to discredit you all and demean you all so that when you write negative stories about me, no one will believe you.’” This statement was reminiscent of Hitler, who said, “By the skillful and sustained use of propaganda, one can make a people see even heaven as hell or an extremely wretched life as paradise.” Whenever one refers to Adolf Hitler, one risks dampening the point with hyperbolic ranting. In this case, America’s slide into Fascism has to be stopped with strong language. Since the failed insurrection on January sixth, we found out the loser in the race for President threatened the Georgia secretary of state Brad Raffensperger with jail, considered the confiscation of voting machines, and implored his vice president to overturn the election illegally.
With remedies in the courts exhausted, Trump’s minions turned to violence, not Antifa or Black Lives Matter. They blamed Democrats in Congress, smashed windows, beat police officers, and caused death. Millions of dollars of property damage to the Capitol building and possibly irrevocably damaging the reputation of the United States. One would expect the attempted country’s overthrow would encourage massive demonstrations, wall-to-wall media coverage, and aggressive actions from Democrats and Republicans. Instead, the Republican National Committee officially censured the two GOP members [Cheney and Kinzinger] on the 1/6 committee; their crime is seeking the truth about the [GOP] dear leader. Fascism is calling from within, and we need to answer the call.
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