(Source: CNN)
During his speech, Trump vowed to “root out…the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country.” Trump’s provocative language—especially his description of his political opponents as vermin—draws comparison to Nazi rhetoric used to dehumanize Jews. For example, in 1942, Nazi leader Adolf Hitler asserted that if he had to send German youth to fight and die in World War II, then he also had “the right to eliminate millions of an inferior race that multiplies like vermin.”
Moments later, Trump claimed that “[America’s] threat is from within.” He appeared to warn that these internal foes are a greater threat than the US's foreign opponents: “If you have a capable, competent, smart, tough leader: Russia, China, North Korea, they're not going to want to play with us.”
(Source: TNR)
The dehumanizing language Trump employed against his political opponents has drawn significant backlash. Many critics, such as Timothy Naftali, a senior research scholar at Columbia University, compare Trump’s rhetoric to that of a dictator. Naftali suggested, “The language [Trump used] is the language that dictators use to instill fear.” Naftali further argued that “When you dehumanize an opponent, you strip them of their constitutional rights to participate securely in a democracy because you’re saying they’re not human. That’s what dictators do.”
One of Trump’s campaign spokesmen, Steven Cheung, responded by claiming that “those who try to make that ridiculous assertion are clearly snowflakes grasping for anything.” However, I believe that Trump’s speech reflects a significant political issue in the US: the rise of far-right extremism. From the Proud Boys to the January 6 Insurrection, right-wing extremism has become a visible presence in United States politics. I believe that these extremist movements, with their vocal support of authoritarianism and fascism, pose a significant threat to democracy in the United States. One can only hope that in the upcoming elections, logic and moderation will prevail over hate and radicalism.
-Konstantinos Paparrizos
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During that very same speech, Mr. Trump advocated for the death penalty for drug dealers, even creating an informal poll to try to prove his case. His words were, "Let's have a vote. Who would be in favor of the death penalty... knowing that it will solve the problem?" The baseless claim that the death penalty will solve the problem of drug trafficking points to an extreme rise in authoritarianism. He also praised President Xi Jinping of China, the infamously censor-heavy, authoritarian-like leader of China. While there are undoubtedly worse people, the fact Mr. Trump lauded him with praise does not inspire much confidence in the continuation of a free and fair (as much as it is right now at least) democracy if he wins the next presidential election.
To me, this news is no surprise--I wonder if his supporters/ other Americans are aware of his likewise authoritarian manners.
In this same speech, according to Marianne LeVine, he ended his speech by claiming that his 2020 election was stolen: "They’ll do anything, whether legally or illegally, to destroy America and to destroy the American Dream" (washingtonpost.com). I think it is interesting to define Trump's presidency as related to the "American dream,"--his word choice doesn't hide his sense of dictatorship and is pretty transparent.
I still don't understand how so many people follow him, vote for him, and give thier full support to him. In his 2016 election he campaigned that the threat was from outside, referring to immigrants. There were many occasions where he refereed to immigratns as criminals, drug dealers, and much more. Althouhg now he claims that the problem is within, stating in his speech from two days ago, "The threat from outside is far less siniter, dangerous and grave than the threat from within." He blamed Democrats and specially President Biden of stopping his efforts to expand veteran access to health care and even causing Democracts and President Biden of pusing the country to the edge of WWIII. He completly did a 180 on what he believed to be the problem. I hope those that are voting vote with common sense, hopefully they can see who is the problem
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/11/us/politics/trump-new-hampshire-veterans.html
I think the headline of this post exemplifies the increased political polarization that we've discussed as a class. The content and rhetoric that gathers the most media attention and garners the most emotional responses from audiences is that which is polarizing and extreme: hence why we see politicians like Donald Trump get criticized for touting essentially Nazi language, while Republican politicians criticize Democratic politicians for essentially speaking in "communist" language. It is scary to see that the Republican party's nominee (most likely) is pushing such authoritarian language. However, I disagree with this post's claim that Trump "praised nations for their limited freedom of expression." In the quote cited in this post to make that argument, it seems instead that Trump is saying he wants America to not be afraid of of countries like Russia, China, and North Korea.
Evan, I do agree that my post's headline is somewhat dramatic. "Nazi propaganda" is a phrase certain to draw people's attention. However, I don't necessarily believe it is false to claim that Trump's speech was similar to Nazi rhetoric. Many of the sources I used include historians agreeing that Trump's speech had many parallels to the language of dictators such as Hitler and Mussolini. Likewise, Trump's ex-wife, Ivanka, has stated that Trump used to study Hitler's speeches in order to sound more persuasive and charismatic. However, I do agree that I misinterpreted Trump's quote when I said that he praised authoritarian nations. Looking back, I think Trump was trying to say that although a competent leader (implying himself) will be able to keep foreign enemies at bay, internal opponents will continue to be a threat to America. I have updated the post accordingly.
https://www.businessinsider.com/donald-trumps-ex-wife-once-said-he-kept-a-book-of-hitlers-speeches-by-his-bed-2015-8
While I do agree it’s improper to use dehumanizing language to refer to other people or groups, even if in disagreement with them, I don’t believe this bears much semblance to Hitler or Nazi Germany. Given the current state of America, the possibility of commencing political persecution seems relatively low.
I do think he brings up an interesting point regarding left-wing extremism though, as well as the threats our country faces from within.
Here is a speculation about China, for example. Very recently on TikTok, videos regarding Osama Bin Laden’s “Letter to America” have gone viral, garnering immense support from many users (linked below). While I think we could all agree that the American government is far from perfect, how easily people are willing to side with external threats, namely Osama Bin Laden, is scary. But, why did this letter go viral? With the algorithm of an app controlled by the Chinese government, it is not far-fetched to assume that there are some ulterior motives here from foreign forces.
I think we can all recognize our country’s drawbacks without becoming entirely anti-America. But, I believe patriotism is paramount to our self-preservation. Nonetheless, civility and respect are still crucial for society. Our leaders should acknowledge issues threatening our country without charged, derogatory language.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/11/16/tech/tiktok-osama-bin-laden-letter-to-america/index.html
I think at this point Trump is aiming to make headlines through these speeches and campaigns because he knows that whatever he says will make headlines and keep his name in the conversation leading up to us getting closer to election day. Trump did not participate in the Republican Debates so these campaigns and rallies that he holds often indicate and reveal his plans. Especially in past instances Trump claims bold claims and makes promises that he has not and will not follow through because he knows that what he says and does will not make his supporters lose trust and faith. Now, these claims and words he uses rile up his supporters while the rest of America grows more and more against him which just creates a bridge from Trump supporters and people who are not fans of the ex president. My opinion I feel that these words will end up helping the person who runs against him as recently Biden came out and addressed the words that Trump used, even saying how "he shouldn’t be president"(CNN). To conclude, I think that in the long term these words that he used will not affect him because somehow he has said even worse words in the past, but ultimately these words just increase political polarization.
Link used: https://www.cnn.com/2023/11/14/politics/biden-trump-nazi-rhetoric/index.html
I don't think Trump's supporters think negatively about this rhetoric at all. And Trump knows that because he already knows his audience. He was already president for four years, people already know how he rolls and support him, and he didn't participate in the Republican debates probably because he just didn't feel a need to. Instead of it deterring his supporters, I think this type of speech would make Trump's supporters view him as a more charismatic figure. In general, lots of Republican voters will probably end up bandwagoning because the other Republican candidates are not nearly as popular, even if Trump says things like this. Trump can make these comments and his supporters won't think it's out of the ordinary, question it, or think twice about what exactly he's saying. As Aurin said, I do think he's doing a publicity stunt---getting attention and making headlines. As the saying goes: "any press is good press."
I don’t know the extent to which Trump should be labeled as “far-right extremist.” Yes, he’s Republican, and yes, lots of the things he says are inexcusably derogatory and seem to embody dictator-like attributes. However, I don’t think it’s fair to draw parallels between him and Nazi Germany. Don’t get me wrong, it was disgusting to see Trump turn Veteran’s Day, a day where we celebrate and honor the people that fight for us in wars, into something so political (and hurtful). But, on the other hand, when one looks at his exact words, they’ll find little that actually relates to those of a Nazi dictator. Any politician or well-informed citizen will say that Trump’s speech was simply a reflection of his personality—he’s just like that. Whether or not someone like this should be our president for the next 4 years is another discussion. Like others have commented, I think this incident was a huge publicity stunt. At this point, almost all of Trump’s followers are not going to hop on the liberal train just because of a single speech. He knows his audience, and he knows that they’re ride-or-die Trump 2024 fans. He’s being smart with it.
Though some say that former president Trump employs this speech to just garner attention from the media and press, I still find it unsettling to see that this kind of language is used by a former president, who is willing to increase the polarity between the political parties, alienating them even though they are Americans as well, for the purpose of trying to gain attention and a shot at re-election. I do not think that individuals like the former president who actively participate in these kinds of campaigning should deserve a role of leadership within our government, especially as he is representing the United States as a whole. In addition, language like this coming from a person that we are supposed to be able to trust and look to for solutions is bound to foster a more negative and harsher environment on our younger generations that could possibly lead to more conflict and tension, especially as seen as from the January 6th insurrection.
Although I don't think Trump paralleled Nazi speech intentionally, the hateful language reflects divided and rage-ful era. Unfortunately it seems many supporters of this time, especially on the far right seem to worship any confident politician as an idol and will likely carry and spread their ideas. It seems there is no critical thought gone into judging politics, or consideration of aversive evidence to change ones mind; the political scene feels like high-energy sports teams, complete with mob mentality. At least it seems the left of the political spectrum holds their leaders more accountable, and is willing to be critical of them. Regardless Americans aren't encouraged to think for themself, and it seems those in government thrive off of blindness. Leaders should be held accountable for their speech and harmful ideas, and should re-evaluate their understanding of what it means to serve a country. Trump and other political leaders of such a diverse country should make effort unify and represent all citizens, not eradicate the voices of groups.
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