In what appears to be growing desperation, Democrats with access to a microphone or a lens went bonkers trying to draw a parallel between Donald J. Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally, and a pro-Nazi rally held at the old Madison Square Garden in 1939.
Also at the new Madison Square Garden, the 1992 Democratic Convention, where fascist Bill Clinton accepted his party’s nomination for president. Calling him a fascist for being at the Garden is as stupid as tarring Trump.
The farther left you go on the Democratic horizon, the more likely you are to engage what I’ll call the “Deplorable mindset” — traffic in hot-button taunts like racist, misogynist, homophobic, anti-Semitic, Islamophobic, transphobic.
Just a few weeks ago, one of my closest friends called me “sexist” when I told him Kamala did not have my vote. (Trump also doesn’t, and won’t, have my vote. MAGAheads say that is Trump Derangement Syndrome, as if there were no good reasons to oppose him.)
Back to my friend. I was deeply insulted and shocked that he was so blinded by his progressive ideology.
My reply was something like, “I’m sexist? I voted for Hillary. How about racist? I voted for Obama.”
Don’t get me wrong. I have nothing against name-calling, especially creative name-calling. I like it, but only if it is tied to some kind of reality.
And this is where harebrained “comedian” Tony Hinchcliffe jumped the rails, making “jokes” about Puerto Ricans at the exact moment Trump is courting Hispanics. The “jokes” were not rooted in reality.
Talk about unforced errors.
Cleanup on Aisle 4!
But that doesn’t amount to Hitler, and as little as I like Trump, he is no Hitler, who was a unique evil in the world. As a Jew, I resent dragging Hitler down to the level of Trump, who is a festering boil on America’s ass, but not one of the greatest mass murderers of all time. The Hitler name doesn’t square with his actions. (Oh! He said he wants generals as loyal as Hitler’s. He doesn’t seem to know some of those loyal generals tried to kill him.)
For years I have been arguing against the Hitler slur with Democrats, including Jewish Democrats, who really ought to know better. If they call him Hitler, I say “Show me the 6 million bodies.” That’s just Jews, he murdered millions more who were not.
Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, converted to Judaism to marry Orthodox Jew Jared Kushner, whom Trump made a close advisor.
Trump’s grandchildren are Jewish, and he moved the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which is Israel’s capital, and where Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu wanted it.
He says things like Jews who don’t vote for him are not real Jews, but that’s not much worse than Biden saying African-Americans who don’t vote for him are not Black.
Neither Trump nor Biden are the sharpest knife in the drawer, but I was prepared to vote for Biden. . . Until, well, you know.
And, yes, Republicans have a propensity to call political rivals Marxists, socialists, and fascists. In America today, anyone can be a fascist.
And by this time next week, we will be drowning in claims that the election was fixed, irrespective of who wins.
Blame the fascists.
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The H——r comparisons just need to stop - period. It takes a shallow mind to equate such things. This first started during the time of Pres Bush 43. There was a man whether one agreed with him or not, was one of the most decent individuals I have ever seen in politics. Was sickening to hear that thrown at him.
During Obama’s time, I remember the Tea Party calling his Obamacare “socialist.” Name calling not based in reality. I had my criticisms of O-Care but it was far from socialist. Rather it was a pretty messy bill that may have opened up a bit of crony capitalism with the insurance companies while doing some good things on the side as well.
However the Obama folks used to constantly play the race card which was nauseating and now Michelle’s speech the other day was the worst form of gender card (if you don’t support Kamala, you are throwing momma off the train!)
Sone or the latter ones can be entertaining even if nauseating. The H——r comparisons are not. They are disgusting.
Strongly agree. I have been happy that Kamala has generally avoided playing the race and gender cards.
Relevant to this issue of name calling, smearing, denigrating, belittling, etc., I recommend this article:
https://amgreatness.com/2023/07/21/barack-obamas-success-how-his-election-created-the-modern-democratic-party-and-transformed-america/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=act_eng
Engrossing. Very, very educational and a great read! Thank you, Mr. Cadwalader, for sharing. Peace.
Dittos!
The culture wars existed long before Obama. Pat Buchanan’s 1992 presidential campaign was built on culture wars, which I remember the MSM ridiculed, because they were so out of touch.
Obama was mostly a centrist, but his victory paved the way for progressives, who are the real trouble makers.
The extremism exhibited by both Progressives and MAGAs is why I'm avoiding political discussions right now. Even folks I know that are generally level headed, whether Democrats or old time Republicans--you know, the real conservatives--are showing tendencies for name calling. It's a trap I don't want to step into, so, as hard as it is for me, I'm eschewing all political discussions and posts for now.
Your desire is, I think, what the No Labels Party has been trying to find for all of us; a leader with positions between the 30-40 yard lines of political, social and cultural thinking, a zone in which most of us are happy, comfortable and agree.
Away from the end zone extremes of both parties as they are today.
I was just on a zoom call with No Labels and their speaker, Adm. McRaven, noted one of our most important missions to strengthen and to protect and to prepare the USA into the decades ahead is drastically to reform and improve public education, for which we in Philadelphia pay $4.6 billion, and the teachers want even more for far fewer students with no declared mission to graduate 100% of our students!!
We need, (my words but similar to those of the Adm.) to set a school mission, come Hell or High Water, to graduate 100% of our Philadelphia students as very well prepared for their next step up in life after high school.
In McRaven's more global terms, to protect and to strengthen the USA and to lead the USA with leaders who are not setting name calling traps for everyone on the other side.
After 4 years of failure are the American people going to reward Harris and the democrats with another term. Do they really want to continue this downward spiral.Im hoping the people learned from their mistake and vote for Trump.
What's astounding, Daniel, is that you look at a burgeoning economy, investment in American manufacturing, low inflation, strong job growth, infrastructure improvements, and low crime statistics as a "failure" and a "Downward spiral." I guess you are listening to your orange god when he calls America a shithole country on a daily basis, huh? Please educate yourself. Or don't. I really don't give a flying fog about you or what you think. That happens when a person cannot acknowledge known facts.
So you think the last 4 years were a success. We will soon see if the American people are as stupid as you.
If America was better off in 2020, how come trumpo💩 lost in a free & fair election? And don't say the election was stolen, dannyboy! There is absolutely ZERO EVIDENCE! None! Trumpo💩 was so awful as President, Joe Biden beat him and received millions more votes.
Well, perhaps we should consider Mussolini comparisons instead of Hitler?
See, Stu, the Hitler comparisons occur because Trump actually says some of the same exact things that Hitler said, and does some of the same things Hitler did. Is he ever going to murder six million Jews? No, one would assume not.
But the comparisons are being made because Trump is seeking to gain power in the exact same way Hitler did, not because he is going to slaughter millions of people. This is inarguable if you take a close look at the fall of the Weimer Republic, which Hitler orchestrated.
Hitler actually said he was going to use the system of Democracy to bring the system of Democracy down in Germany, and that is exactly what he did. Just as Hitler and the Nazis studied America's treatment of blacks and Ji Crow and mirrored some of what was done here, Trump is doing the reverse with Nazi Germany -- he is studying how Hitler took power, and attempting to do the same thing here. Admittedly, Trump (a moron) is probably not smart enough to know these things nor plan these actions. But the money people behind him are, and can. And we are seeing it played out in real time every day.
Is it incendiary to compare Trump and Hitler? Certainly. But as long as he continues to call the press the enemy of the people, demonize immigrants, make up false claims about corrupt elections, wear the colors of white supremacy, and allow comments like those that were made in Madison Square Garden be a part of his campaign, this is inevitable.
And that's on HIM, not us.
The short answer is, when “Hitler” is invoked, no one is thinking how he finagled his was into being Chancellor (not so different from how Kamala become the candidate, eh?) they are thinking of murdering opponents, and then everyone else.
You know, like Trump, Hitler was a nonsmoker. Does that mean anything?
Trumpo fascism is more akin to Mussolini & Juan Peron than Hitler.
A fascist is a fascist. Peron, Mussolini, Hitler, Franco -- all fascists with different MOs. I think people revert to Hitler name calling because many don't know much about history, and don't read, and that's the first fascist that comes to their mind. Trump for sure has fascist, dictatorial tendencies. But, I wonder if he is being used by American oligarchs like Musk, Theil, DeVos, Hunt, Koch (maybe that coward Bezos) and others who want an oligarchy like Russia has.
Actually, Mussolini is a much more accurate comparison.
Fascist is ‘t bad as Nazis. Lots of fascist leaders around, only one Nazi.
A thoughtful column deriding vile name calling degenerates into bugwits calling each other vile names. Irony personified.
Apparantly you don't listen to Right Wing talk radio... (I do). Rich Zeoli, for one, consistently calls Kamala Harris Anti-Semitic. The Right wing Jews are going all in on "name calling", and attacking Harris as Anti-semetic, as well as anyone who disagrees with them ...I've been called a "Self Hating Jew" more than once because I support her. By Jews that barely know me. Never mind that Harris husband, second gentleman Doug Imhoff has made fighting anti-semitism his cause since October 7. I agree with people on this thread say that Trump is being called a facist because his behavior, his ideology, his remarks all echo what EXPERTS say are facist. It's very different from ugly name calling. Once again, Stu, your comparisons are lop-sided.
Cherry picking again. I wrote the GOP uses Marxist, socialist and fascist, and named Tony Hinchcliffe.
But I will NEVER satisfy YOU because you want me to agree with you, and I don’t, except rarely.
The use of Hitler is UNIQUELY disgusting to this Jew.
Triggered again. What, specifically, did I say that you don't agree with? (except of course that I accuse you of being lop-sided). I didn't cherry-pick anything. I stated FACTS.