Fascism watch thread/news and discussions

[caltrek]

I was going to post this in the Conservative Watch thread, but since I have already opined that Tucker Carson has definite fascist tendencies, I will place this article here.

An Expert Weighs in on Ukraine Bioweapons Lab Conspiracy
by Michael Mechanic
March 24, 2022

https://www.motherjones.com/politics/20 ... -fox-news/

Introduction:

(Mother Jones) The New York Times ran a piece Wednesday about US right-wingers parroting Kremlin talking points and swapping pro-Russian conspiracy theories with Moscow—most notably the unproven claim that the US government has been funding bioweapons labs in Ukraine.

As the Times reported, war-related mentions of “bioweapons labs” in Russian- and English-language media and social media have more than doubled since early March, when Moscow gave the theory a fine boost. On March 6, its Defense Ministry released a televised statement in which Russian officials claimed to have uncovered “traces of a military biological program being implemented in Ukraine, funded by the U.S. Department of Defense.”

Just a few days later, on March 9, Fox News host Tucker Carlson—whose clips, as my colleague David Corn first reported, are being incorporated into the state media’s official propaganda strategy—dutifully aired the Defense Ministry’s statement. “Nuland just confirmed that the Russian disinformation they’ve been telling us for days is a lie and a conspiracy theory and crazy and immoral to believe, is in fact, totally and completely true,” Carlson said.
“Whoa!” (He was referring to Senate testimony by Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland, who responded to a question from Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fl.) by saying that Ukraine does have “biological research facilities,” which US officials are worried could fall into Russian hands.)

On the day after Carlson’s broadcast, as Corn reported, Putin’s minions issued a memo with “recommendation for coverage” that ordered state media outlets to use Carlson clips on their programs. The same memo also dealt with the biolab conspiracy, Corn writes:

• [It] highlights this bioweapons allegation as a top talking point for Russian media, noting the message should be that the “activities of military biological laboratories with American participation on the territory of Ukraine carried global threats to Russia and Europe.” The document goes further, encouraging its recipients to allege that the “the United States is working on a ‘biogenocide of the Eastern Slavs.’”

[caltrek]

'The Jackboot Fits': Columnist Torches GOP Over Perplexing Response to DNC Chair’s 'Fraud, Fear and Fascism' Claim About the Party
by Meaghan Ellis
April 8, 2022

https://www.alternet.org/2022/04/wapo-o ... rches-gop/

Introduction:

(Alternet) As Democratic lawmakers worked to finalize the confirmation of US Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, a number perplexing events took place in national political theater this week. One of the most pivotal moments centered on Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison’s attack on Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) following the Republican senator's suggestion that Jackson is a Nazi sympathizer, per The Washington Post.

Harrison described Cotton as a “maggot, infested man” while collectively calling out the Republican Party and labeling it a political party “built on fraud, fear, and fascism.”

Almost immediately after Harrison made the remarks, the Republican National Committee (RNC) fired back with a response. But instead of criticizing the Democratic official for his charge about the party, the RNC focused more on his remarks targeting Cotton. In a newly published op-ed, The Washington Post's Dana Milbank highlighted the seemingly odd argument from the party.

"Interestingly, a statement from the Republican National Committee taking offense at the 'maggot-infested' charge did not dispute the “fraud, fear and fascism” formulation," Milbank wrote. "As your self-appointed fact-checker, I have therefore examined the merits of the accusation."

[weatheriscool]

Isn't Putin a fascist?

[Member]

Isn't Putin a fascist?

Not literally one but close

[erowind]

.

[wjfox]

[caltrek]

. Edit: (Accidental double post)

[wjfox]

[wjfox]

[caltrek]

When the U.S. Is Truly Run by These Fascists It Will Be Too Late
by Thom Hartmann
June 8, 2022

Introduction:

(Common Dreams) It's time to talk about what an American fascist government would look like. The word "fascism" gets thrown around a lot, but most Americans have no idea what it would look like or how it would actually play out.

It's critical to lay out what a fascist America would look like now because this is what is being envisioned right now by many in the Republican Party, and it might come to pass.

They don't talk about it out loud very much, like Nixon's man G. Gordon Liddy used to back in the day when he signed memos using Hitler's SS symbol. But there is a model here and they do have something in mind.

What could it be? What would it look like? How will it most likely come about?

First, and essential to American fascism, Republicans envision a strong-man Leader who will hold power for as long as he (it's always a "he") chooses, with the transition to the next Leader determined by the Leader himself.

Read more here: https://www.commondreams.org/views/202 ... -too-late

[caltrek]

The January 6 Hearings Showed Why it’s Reasonable to Call Trump a Fascist
by Zack Beauchamp
June 10, 2022

Introduction:

(Vox) Amid the many extraordinary revelations at the January 6 committee’s first primetime hearing Thursday, one stood out for its sheer depravity: that during the assault, when rioters chanted “hang Mike Pence” in the halls of the Capitol, President Donald Trump suggested that the mob really ought to execute his vice president.

“Maybe our supporters have the right idea,” he said, per a committee source. “[Mike Pence] deserves it.”

Endorsing violence is hardly new for Trump; it’s something he’s done repeatedly, often in an allegedly joking tone. But the reported comment from January 6 is qualitatively worse given the context: coming both amid an actual violent attack he helped stoke and one he did little to halt. The committee found that the president took no steps to defend the Capitol building, failing to call in the National Guard, or even speak to his secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security.

While he was de facto permitting the mob’s rampage, he was privately cheering the most violent stated objective of people he acknowledged as “our supporters.”

Throughout Trump’s presidency, there was a raging debate among experts as to whether it was accurate to describe him as a “fascist.” One of the strongest counterarguments, that his political movement did not involve the kind of street violence characteristic of Italian and German fascism, was undermined on January 6 — though some scholars still argued that the term was somewhat imprecise.

Read more here: https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politic ... p-fascist

[caltrek]

Trump Sycophants Advanced a Coup Plot They Knew Was Illegal
by Dan Friedman
June 16, 2022

Introduction:

(Mother Jones) Beware the yes men. Donald Trump couldn’t have caused January 6 alone. The defeated president’s attempted putsch would not have gone as far it did, and the January 6 attack on Congress might have been avoided, if sycophantic Trump aides had not helped Trump further plans that they privately admitted were illegal and dangerous. And Trump’s coup attempt would have gone further had VP Mike Pence and his staff not finally stood up to the boss.

The select committee investigating the January 6 attack on Congress revealed Thursday that John Eastman, the conservative lawyer who helped concoct the unsupported notion that Pence could unilaterally reject electors and hand Trump another term, had begun discussing the plot before Election Day.

Eastman knew even then that the plan was unlawful: “Nowhere does it suggest the President of the Senate gets to make the determination on his own,” he wrote in comments on a draft letter to Trump that the committee revealed on Thursday. The letter, whose authorship is unclear, described how Pence could reject state electors. Eastman’s note referred to the 12th Amendment, which lays out the process for confirming electoral votes.
According to Thursday’s testimony, even as Eastman curried favor with Trump by pushing this coup plan, he consistently admitted that it was illegal. Greg Jacob, Pence’s former top lawyer, testified that Eastman had “acknowledged” in a January 4, 2021 meeting that his plan violated the Electoral Count Act. That means it was against the law.

Although Eastman asserted the law was unconstitutional, he admitted his argument wouldn’t fly. He said, according to Jacob, that no court would agree with him, and that the Supreme Court would reject his argument unanimously.

Read more here: https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2 ... gal-coup/

caltrek: As the evidence keeps trickling in it is clear that January 6 was a coup attempt. The plotters knew that Trump had lost the election, that violence was a likely result of their efforts, that pressure needed to be placed on Vice President Pence to halt him from carrying out his Constitutional duties, and that this pressure was not just political but was a very real threat to his life. Of course, those in denial will likely continue to be in denial, and the answer will be something like "well, what about inflation" for which no remedy will actually be proposed other than "elect our guys back into office." No doubt so that they can complete the coup.

[caltrek]

A Fugitive Chinese Mogul Spent Big to Overturn the 2020 Election
by Dan Friedman
June 16, 2022

Introduction:

(Mother Jones) A fugitive Chinese mogul who has worked closely with Steve Bannon—and who is under federal investigation for fraud—spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to support efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Through a series of opaque financial transactions, a company controlled by the exiled businessman Guo Wengui spent more than $400,000 for hundreds of his supporters to take part in a November 14, 2020, rally in Washington promoting Donald Trump’s false claims of election fraud. The company also gave $100,000 to an organization run by prominent pro-Trump attorney Lin Wood—apparently to finance litigation that was aimed at reversing Joe Biden’s victory in Georgia. These payments are detailed in receipts, wire transfer records, and WhatsApp messages obtained by Mother Jones.

Wood said in interviews that the $100,000 donation to his nonprofit, the Fightback Foundation, was arranged by Bannon, the former Trump adviser and influential right-wing media figure. According to Wood, Bannon claimed the money came from a donor in Illinois. Documentation obtained by Mother Jones indicates that the funds came originally from Guo. Bannon did not respond to a request for comment. Neither did Guo and his attorney.

Guo is a former Chinese real estate developer—once ranked as the 74th richest person in China—who fled that country in 2014 ahead of corruption and other charges there. After arriving in New York, he set up shop in a lavish Manhattan apartment and gained attention by launching a torrent of unsubstantiated accusations of corruption and sexual misconduct by Chinese Communist Party elites.

Partnering with Bannon, Guo launched Chinese-language media companies and developed a sprawling network of zealous backers from the Chinese diaspora, including club-like organizations in the United States and cities around the world.

Read more here: https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2 ... ga-march/

[caltrek]

Trump Lashing Out at January 6 Panel is "Essentially Saying 'Yeah I Did it'":
by Ivana Saric
June 19, 2022

Introduction:

(Axios) Former President Donald Trump's vitriol toward the Jan. 6 select committee and former Vice President Mike Pence is tantamount to a confession about his role in the Capitol riot, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) told NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday.

Driving the news: Thursday's Jan. 6 select committee hearing unveiled testimony from numerous Trump administration aides about a "heated" phone call in which Trump berated Pence for refusing to overturn the election, with one former White House assistant testifying that he recalled Trump calling Pence a "wimp."

• Trump pushed back against the allegations at a gathering of Christian conservatives on Friday, saying he never called Pence a "wimp" but lamenting that "Mike did not have the courage to act."
• Trump also hit back at the select committee, accusing it of "knowingly spinning a fake and phony narrative."
…
• "Which is what we have been contending all along. That if you allow impunity for attempts at unconstitutional seizures of power — which is what a coup is — then you're inviting it again in the future," Raskin added.

Read more here: https://www.axios.com/2022/06/19/trump ... ie-raskin


Edit: Minor grammatical correction.

[wjfox]

[wjfox]

[caltrek]

The U.S. Supreme Court Is Now a Fascist Institution
by Steven Singer
June 27, 2022

Introduction:

(Common Dreams) The US Supreme Court is a fascist organization.

Let me cut right to the chase to explain why.

This week the conservative majority (I won’t call them justices) overturned Roe v. Wade – the landmark 1973 decision that expanded access to abortion nationwide.

This is on top of decisions deeply wounding state’s rights to make gun regulations, to hold police civilly accountable for reading suspects their Miranda rights, and even the separation of Church and State in regard to public funding of parochial schools.

Let me be very clear—this is not about consistency based on legal precedent or interpretation of the law. It is ideology—pure and simple.

Read more here: https://www.commondreams.org/views/202 ... stitution

[caltrek]

The Rise of American Fascism
by Chris Hedges
June 27, 2022

Introduction:

(Common Dreams) The Supreme Court is relentlessly funding and empowering Christian fascism. It not only overturned Roe v. Wade, ending a constitutional right to an abortion, but ruled on June 21 that Maine may not exclude religious schools from a state tuition program. It has ruled that a Montana state program to support private schools must include religious schools. It ruled that a 40-foot cross could remain on state property in suburban Maryland. It upheld the Trump administration regulation allowing employers to deny birth control coverage to female employees on religious grounds. It ruled that employment discrimination laws do not apply to teachers at religious schools. It ruled that a Catholic social services agency in Philadelphia could ignore city rules and refuse to screen same-sex couples applying to take in foster children. It neutered the 1965 Voting Rights Act. It watered down laws allowing workers to combat sexual and racial harassment in court. It reversed century-old campaign finance restric¬tions to permit corpor¬a¬tions, private groups and oligarchs to spend unlim¬ited funds on elec¬tions, a system of legalized bribery, in Citizens United v Federal Election Commission. It permitted states to opt out of the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion. It undercut the ability of public sector unions to raise funds. It forced workers with legal grievances to submit their complaints to privatized arbitration boards. It ruled that states cannot restrict the right to carry concealed weapons in public. It ruled that suspects cannot sue police who neglect to read them their Miranda warnings and use their statements against them in court. Outlawing contraception, same-sex marriage and same-sex consensual relations are probably next. Only 25 percent of those polled say they have confidence in Supreme Court decisions.

I do not use the word fascist lightly.

Read more here: https://www.commondreams.org/views/202 ... n-fascism

[caltrek]

I just listened to an NPR version of this, which also popped up in mChat (courtesy of Rakilian):



Edit - caltrek's comment: This does answer a question that arose concerning that day. Why did Trump say he would meet the crowd at the house of Congress and then not show up?

I had assumed that it was just another Trump lie and was more or less part of his plan. Apparently, the Secret Service actually thwarted his plan, and for good reason. Part of the discussion apparently involved weapons that some in the crowd might have possessed. Trump, not illogically, concluded that they were his people and not prone to hurt him. Of course, the Secret Service also had obligations to protect the Vice President. Trump himself would blame some of the actions of the mob on Antifa, so we now see how insincere he was in that argument.

Of course, pro-Trump folks are going to point to this as evidence of opposition from the deep state. As I have written before (and have heard others argue) they fail to consider that the actions of "deep state" actors were motivated by their oaths to protect the Constitution, and in this case even the president, and probably the vice-president as well. Logic is not their strong suit.

[caltrek]

Poll: Quarter of Americans Open to Armed Rebellion Against Government
by Andy Monserud
June 30, 2022

Introduction:

CHICAGO (Courthouse News) — A new University of Chicago poll found that over a quarter of a deeply alienated American public, particularly those who identify as Republican, believe that it may “soon be necessary to take up arms” against the government.

The poll, a collaboration between Republican and Democratic pollsters Neil Newhouse and Joel Benenson, respectively, surveyed 1,000 registered voters around the U.S.. A slight majority of those, 56%, said they believed the government was corrupt and “rigged against everyday people like me,” with self-identified Republicans polling substantially higher on that question than Democrats.

In total, 28% of voters agreed with the statement “it may be necessary at some point soon for citizens to take up arms against the government.” That skewed heavily toward Republicans, with one in three Republicans and 45% of self-identified “strong Republicans” agreeing with the statement. The GOP doesn’t hold a monopoly on the sentiment, though – one in five Democrats agreed, as did 35% of self-identified independent voters.

The belief in armed resistance was loosely correlated with actual gun ownership. About 37% of those who said they had guns in their homes also agreed with the “taking up arms” statement.

“These really are stunning results, that really go to the depth of the nation’s partisan divide and the extent to which Americans really don’t trust the media to provide unbiased information,” Newhouse said in an interview. “The bottom line is, it’s worse out there than we thought.”

Read more here: https://www.courthousenews.com/poll-qu ... vernment/