Things to Remember in November

I lunched recently with a Republican friend. He’s no Trumpist. He deeply believes that rules and laws are meant to be followed, and differing politically needn’t mean hating each other. That these are now quaint notions among Republicans, whispered by Republican political candidates lest they be punished, like Liz Cheney and many others, is one serious symptom of our disease.

Donald Trump is no Hitler. He’s neither as smart nor as ideologically driven. Hitler had embittered views on Germany and its history, and hated Jews. He had strong, if strongly bent, ideas. Trump has none. Trump is pure narcissist. His deep feelings of unworthiness spark bragging and bullying. The right course is always what makes him look good, at least to himself. Had Democrats worshiped him, he’d be protecting abortion rights, not restricting them.

But both men speak – mostly railing angrily at enemies – in ways disaffected people listen to, then follow violently. Hitler’s “brown shirts,” initially an informal group, violently helped the Nazi Party grow, and were later formalized as the S.A.

Trump uses the Proud Boys and other groups similarly. Pre-election, he told them to “stand back and stand by.” Post-election, his associates planned with them an assault on the Capitol. Then his fiery speech spurred their violent invasion.

Consider election officials who’ve been harassed for doing their job. Or the rage of “doxxing” and “swatting.”

Trump intends this widespread intimidation. Often on “Truth Social” he attacks people involved in his legal cases, and followers re-post and either threaten or act – attacking the FBI after Mar-a-Lago was searched, posting grand jurors’ names and addresses after Trump’s Georgia indictment, and shouted that the hush-money jurors should be “doxxed” or even killed. They tried to “swat” the judge in Trump’s Washington trial, and (on Christmas Day) the prosecutor. After a former police officer the Trumpists nearly killed on January 6 criticized Trump recently, his mother reportedly got “swatted.” A Proud Boy who served time for January 6 posted New York prosecutor Alvin Bragg’s photo beside a noose. (Compare Biden’ regarding Hunter’s trial: he loves his son, but he trusts the process and wouldn’t pardon Hunter.)

Wouldn’t believing Trump’s lies – that all these justice systems are rigged against him and that corruption stole the presidency – make you you want to do something?

If I thought something I wrote inspired threats against or persecution of someone else, I’d immediately (and strongly) urge everyone to desist. Mr. Trump repeats his lies and threats – and smiles, as he did when invaders shouted “Hang Mike Pence!” Now he threatens to use the DOJ for revenge.

What I hope my friend, other Republicans, and independent voters will recall is that the violence that brings an egotistical man to power can then be turned against anyone, for any reason. If they can beat and bully others, they can beat and bully you, should you ever disagree. Further, as with Europe fascism and the Chinese Cultural Revolution, often those grand movements reduce to personalities at the local level, with men using their connection to power to get the violence turned on an annoying neighbor, an inconvenient business competitor, or someone who insults them. Call him “Communist!” or “Reactionary!” and he’s gone.

What I hope I remember is that we must recognize and repair what’s so wrong that some decent people admire Mr. Trump. Lies about an unfair system are easiest to believe when folks feel victimized or forgotten.

                                                        – 30 --

 

[The above column appeared Sunday, 16June, 2024, in the Las Cruces Sun-News and on the newspaper's website and on KRWG’s website, under Local Viewpoints. A shortened and sharpened radio commentary version will air during the week on KRWG (90.1 FM) and on KTAL-LP (101.5 FM, streaming at www.lccommunityradio.org/). For further information on the topic of this column, please go to my blog, https://soledadcanyon.blogspot.com/ .]

[This is an interesting article about CEOs, who were leaning toward voting for Trump, who’d then spent an hour in a room with him and remarked on how much he meandered and appeared not to know things. That’s how it looks, of course; and it may be that the best Biden advertising Dems could do would be buying a half-hour of TV time for Donald to just talk, and explain what his plans are.]

[Strengthens my feeling that the debates will be both more and less important than ever. Less because substantively we’ll be listening to two old guys who’ve been on the stage for a long time, and newspapers, TV, blogs, and smoke signals tell us daily their every thought; but far more important than ever because the all-important how they say things, how they seem to viewers, is a bigger part of the picture: with two old men, and both sides swearing the other is sinking fast into dementia, and one whose enemies call him a bully facing one whose enemies call him weak, won’t everyone be watching for slow or wandering minds, whether Trump can control his bullying, and whether Biden can find the right manner to combat the bullying? Will the innovation (which I’ve long advocated to my TV set) of letting moderators cut off the mike of someone who’s time has ended help Biden, as one first thinks – or help Trump by shortening his answers and silencing his worst moments? Or if he shouts at a dead microphone, will he look silly to many while his supporters rage at censorship? Biden at his State of the Union was a star, although perhaps more overtly political than one might like. Debates are tougher. He does seem to forget a lot of names – as I do, being nearly as old. (I forget even some pretty familiar names, but when you’re writing a column you can look ‘em up.) On TV, too much of it could be fatal.

On the other hand, while the G7 summit was at least partially successful, video of Biden showed him off to the side as the group watched a sky-diving exhibition and joked. Biden looked almost absent, then walked away.  [NOTE: a helpful friend/reader urged me to look further into this.  While Biden does look kind of "off to the side" at the start, not the center of things, which was my observation, the "wandering off" part was in the editing.  He's actually approaching one of the sky-divers, who's putting his parachute away.  Not wandering off into an empty field. ]

[Trump admirers may not like this column, although I don't think they'll find I got any facts wrong.  But more important for other readers than Trump-bashing, is to discern and try to deal with some of the reasons decent people trust Mr. Trump, and address those reasons.  I know part of it is ethnic prejudice and the culture wars.  But I also agree that most folks in this country are being mistreated by our system.  But a bigger source of their problems than ethnic "others" or the fact that different folks have some very different takes on sex and gender, and in fact some very different natures is corporate cheating and lies, poisoning of air, water, earth, and our food, and a ridiculously unprogressive tax system.  As always, the folks doing us harm have plenty of money for slick advertising and the buying of politicians [and Supreme Court justices now!] who'll do their bidding.  Trump and his allies survive because they play on fears and uncertainty, and the fact that it's often easier for someone to  blame "the others" than it is to penetrate the details of corporate machinations.  Progressives need always to remember that some of those Trumpists -- perhaps many of them -- are not enemies but vellow victims of the same forces.]