Offending MAGA Fascists

Posted on by under Bits 'n Pieces, cartoons, Election 2022, History, Law and justice, Political commentary, Racism & Bigotry, Re-blogs, Social commentary, voting rights

When I first heard President Biden refer to the maga-cult as “semi-fascist”, my only argument was that there was no ‘semi’ about it — given the chance, they would go full-on fascist. They have Mussolini’s playbook in their safe. Clay Jones agrees, only he states it better than I ever could AND … he does cartoons! Thank you, Clay, for another spot-on opinion and great ‘toon!!!

claytoonz

President Joe Biden gave an accurate description of Trump supporters within the Republican Party, and many people aren’t happy with it.

Speaking at a fundraiser for Democrats, the president said, “It’s not just Trump. It’s the entire philosophy that underpins the — I’m going to say something: It’s like semi-fascism.” He expanded on this at another rally saying, “The MAGA Republicans are a threat to our very democracy. They refuse to accept the will of the people. They embrace — embrace — political violence.”

In a column for The Washington Post titled, “No, MAGA Republicans do not support ‘semi-fascism,” Henry Olsen makes excuses for and defends MAGA fascists. It takes him a while to get to the January 6 Trump coup attempt, but he writes that it “does not justify Biden’s use of the inflammatory label ‘semi-fascism.’” Uh, yes it does.

The attempt to overturn an election, overthrow the government…

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31 thoughts on “Offending MAGA Fascists”

  1. Pingback: The Worst, Most Dangerous, Speech Ever – Seek the Truth

  2. You are simply repeating talking points. You need to provide examples to back up the claims you make.

    1. Following the Constitution. I pointed out in another post the President Biden lacks the authority to forgive student debt. Speaker Pelosi said this as well the year before. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpX2q3iXmwk

    You agreed in your comment that it should be a legislative act, but then said it was necessary for the president to act since the legislature hadn’t. Who is following the Constitution and who isn’t?

    2. In the raid on Mar-al-Lago, the president’s fourth amendment rights and attorney-client privilege was violated. Who is ignoring the Constitution in this instance?

    3. You act as if politics started when Trump came into office. The 2nd amendment has ALWAYS been about the right to self-protection. The amendment is very short, but many of the founders wrote about it and what it meant for them. They intended it to be about the right to personally bear arms.

    4. The mantra against the 2nd amendment is that we have too many guns. But more guns does not lead to more deaths. Disarming and defunding police, putting hardened criminals on a merry-go-round, not enforcing existing laws, taking the wrong actions (like banning rifles which are not the problem), ignoring the problems in big cities (where handgun violence is the problem), and more.

    The US has almost half of all privately owned firearms, but is in the middle-of-the-pack for gun violence. Why? I wrote about this earlier: https://seek-the-truth.com/2022/06/30/too-many-guns-or-something-else/; https://seek-the-truth.com/2022/06/16/the-gun-control-argument-is-flawed/

    5. Who is complaining about stolen elections? More states were contested by Democrats January 6, 2017 than by Republicans January 6, 2021. Stacey Abrams lost the governorship of Georgia by 50,000 votes, yet every democrat of note has proclaimed her the governor for four years.

    Our election was hijacked. There is no question. Congress has a duty to #ProtectOurDemocracy & #FollowTheFacts.— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) May 16, 2017

    6. January 6, 2021. Nobody is whitewashing that something bad happened. The lie is about Trump’s role in it. The J6 committee is not about finding the truth: https://seek-the-truth.com/2022/08/05/what-did-we-learn-from-the-january-6-committee/

    Trump said “patriotically and peacefully protest” on 1/6, words ignored by the committee. They took the remainder of his speech and twisted his words to prove what they had already concluded from the start. Show me how he encouraged violence. Give me examples. You can’t.

    My post outlines facts about Trump attempting to call the National Guard and who stopped it. And why was this never examined by the J6 committee?

    The further lie is that everyone who supported him in any way is supportive of the actions on 1/6. No Right public figures supported it. None. Find me one.

    7. Who wants to stone gays and admires Hitler? I know of nobody, Left or Right. You might find one person, not an elected representative, who went out on a limb and said something crazy (or maybe something you interpret to mean this things), and you want to proclaim this is representative. Please.

    8. A Bernie Sanders supporter shot at dozens of Congressmen in 2017. Was Sanders blamed for this? No. I’m not saying he should have been, but the nut job who thought he was carrying out Sander’s dictates is not really his fault. The same standard should be applied to all.

    9. Who supports violence?

    There needs to be unrest in the streets – Rep Ayanna Pressley

    Protestors should not let up – VP Kamala Harris (during 2020 riots which killed 25 people and cause $2 billion in property damage).

    I just don’t know why there aren’t uprisings all over the country. Maybe there will be – Speaker Pelosi

    If you see anybody from that cabinet in a restaurant, in a dept store, you get out and you create a crowd and you push back on them. Tell them, they’re not welcome. – Rep Maxine Watters https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJCDe7vdFfw

    Madonna suggested burning down the White House in 2017.

    People protested in DC near the White House January 20, 2017. More than 200 were arrested https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/inauguration-2017/washington-faces-more-anti-trump-protests-after-day-rage-n709946

    Senator Chuck Schumer threated the Supreme Court justices on the Supreme court steps. https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2020/03/04/schumer-gorsuch-kavanaugh-supreme-court-abortion-lead-vpx.cnn. You have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price.

    This is the tip of the iceberg.

    10. Why do you folks only seek problems on one side? I could go on all day, but will you even listen, even consider what I have to say?

    11. Just one more. LGBTQ: I have said extensively, live your life as you please, but don’t demand that I affirm it. My lack of affirmation is interpreted as “hate”. That’s the whole argument from the Left. I have been called every name in the book because I will not agree it is good. I don’t seek to control people. I don’t seek to enter their bedroom. I just will not say it is good. That’s it. That’s my great sin. https://seek-the-truth.com/2021/07/15/more-on-transgenderism-it-is-not-about-hate/

    Like

  3. Well, boo-(bad word) hoo.
    We see MAGA voters having temper tantrums because the vote went their way, and because a guy who twice lost the majority vote had a hissy hit. We see Right-Wing politicians ignore the US constitution and turn the concept of Freedom into My Way Only-dom, while allowing supporters to wave guns in a direct fashion and chant like Nazis. We have Right Wing politicians say how much they admire Hitler (cough- Malmedy 1944-cough).
    They droll over Putin and make excuses for the Russian invasion of Ukraine OK.
    What in name of Democracy do they think they would be labelled?

    Liked by 1 person

  5. Biden also said: “Trump and the extreme MAGA Republicans have made their choice. To go backwards, full of anger, violence, hate and division.

    “MAGA Republicans don’t just threaten our personal rights and economic security,” Biden said. “They are a threat to our very democracy. They refuse to accept the will of the people. They embrace — embrace — political violence. They don’t believe in democracy.”

    These are absolute lies from the current president. Millions of others like me supported Trump while also supporting personal rights, economic security, and democracy.

    President Biden in his inaugural speech talked about national unity, but as the next election approaches, his rhetoric is divisive once again. President Biden condemns large portions of the American people to salvage a few more votes. Make no mistake, this is all about the election. Turn the election into one about Trump and Dems will do better. Allow it to be a referendum on the Biden Admin and Dems will crash and burn.

    Who exactly is the problem here? Folks like me see his remarks as a big problem because they are NOT TRUE. This is the same guy that said in 2008 Mitt Romney wanted to put all blacks back in chains. I hate Mitt Romney’s politics, but what an awful and completely untrue thing to say about the man. You loved him when he voted to convict Trump, right? You forget he was accused of being the worst kind of racist just a few years back.

    You obviously agree with Biden’s words. Yet many do not agree at all. Are you certain you are right and I and millions of others like me who want something better for this country just as you do, are all evil? We are all facists? We hate democracy? If you truly believe that, then I have no doubt you have absolutely no real perspective on politics today.

    We judge each other actions, but we should not judge motivations. How do you possibly know what each of thinks and that our intention is to end democracy and have only our way? It is so offensive, yet it is so routine and so carelessly delivered, just as it was when Hillary Clinton called tens of millions of Americans deplorables.

    This kind of language is tearing the country apart. You want unity? This is not how to achieve it.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Sorry, Dave, but I disagree. Every word you just quoted was true: the ‘maga-cultists’ as I call them ARE a threat to what’s left of our democratic foundation; they do reject the will of the people; and they are inciting and calling for violence as a means to an end.

      The President has been striving to bring the ‘two sides’ closer together, but his every effort is rejected by the Republicans in Congress. Don’t blame him … he tried. Blame those who are unwilling to budge an inch, and who claim to represent the will of the people while actually representing the will of only the top wealthiest people.

      Am I certain I am right? Not always. Nobody is always right. But I am certain that the divisiveness and tendency toward violence in this country are destroying it from within. And the bulk of the blame for that falls squarely on the shoulders of the followers and boot-lickers of Donald Trump. And now, I turn the tables. You and I both make statements that sound as if we are certain we’re right. Are you so certain your views are more valid than mine? Are you so certain that you share in the majority views of this nation and that the majority have conservative views?

      Liked by 1 person

      • Thanks for engaging me on this. It is good to exchange ideas.

        First, I am not a boot-licker. My views on Trump: he should step aside in 2024. He is too old, his time has passed, and he will draw too many voters back to the Dems. We have better choices. I understand many of people’s concerns with Trump. I have many myself. I also give Trump credit for accomplishing a good deal during four years. Most people I know on the Right have similar nuanced views. You make a gross generalization of people which is not accurate. I think many people take such a stance because it makes them feel superior to others. It’s human nature, but it is still wrong.

        Prejudice is defined as taking the characteristics of a few people and applying them to a larger group. Hillary Clinton said the following in 2016:

        “You know, to just be grossly generalistic, you could put half of Trump’s supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables. Right?” Clinton said. “The racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamaphobic—you name it. And unfortunately there are people like that. And he has lifted them up.”

        Biden grouped everyone together in the same way, as did Kathy Hochul this week https://nypost.com/2022/08/25/kathy-hochuls-call-for-5-4m-republicans-to-leave-new-york-is-dangerous/ as did Hochul’s predecssor as well.

        You and your followers endorse this type of rhetoric. It is okay with you because it is applied to Republicans and not women or blacks or another group, but it is no less wrong no matter what group it is applied to.

        A couple weeks ago my brother sent me an email saying Trump employed Soviet style tactics. Ok, I asked please give me examples. I received an email back saying that I am the problem, but zero examples. I refuse to face facts, he said. A second person took the challenge, but his first bullet item was regarding Trump’s tactics in primarying opponents. Participation in the Democratic process is tantamount to Soviet style politics, per him. I included the entire thread in a recent post. I sent it to 50 people and got nothing credible so far. Nobody in my circle to meet that challenge. I am still waiting for a credible response to describe why Trump is a Soviet style leader. Everyone knows it and if I don’t recognize how awful he is, I must be the problem. I just can’t see the facts, facts that they somehow are unable to articulate. I just ask for more than talking points. Interest in my challenge has waned as it is not fruitful to argue with one who demands something resembling proof.

        I throw the challenge here: give me facts to support your claims. Take whatever charge it is: Trump is a Soviet, his followers are all boot-lickers, we want to undermine the Democrat process, whatever you believe, and give me reasons to support it. The talking points are ubiquitous; the details to support them are scarce. Again, I am no special pleader for Trump. He has many faults but the most egregious claims cannot be supported.

        I’ve followed politics since I was a teenager. As years progress, I find almost no moral or intellectual support for progressive ideas. I’ve been looking for the support. I engage folks on the other side like you. I read and listen to public figures on the Left. I find almost nothing that I can support among the Left’s views today. I think most on the Left believe they are doing good and are right. But I can’t see the good. I am not a special pleader for Right wing ideas, but they at least have a few good ideas and a few good people. I may even support you in some criticism of the Right.

        If I cannot find a moral or intellectual basis for actions, I look for a political one. There you can find the reasoning for why Biden and others have been so disdainful of their opponents. The rank and file are convinced they are out for justice, fairness, or other such values, but they are fooled. You say Biden has been unifying. How in the world can you possibly come to that conclusion? I have followed the man throughout his career. He wasn’t much to brag about when cognitively with it.

        I am certain I am correct because I have been hearing continually for forty years how the views I support (along with candidates I support) are racist, sexist, homophobic, anti-democratic, etc. I know that I am none of those things and that these comments are simply opportunistic comments to obtain votes. I know it also because when I dig, just scratch the surface, there is no support whatsoever for any of these charges. It is what Goebbels called the big lie. Repeat it often enough and people will believe it. These charges are reaching a crescendo today. The rhetoric of the Left today is very dangerous.

        One example to make my point: abortion. It is an abhorrent practice because it ends a life. I call it a holocaust, one worse than the Nazi holocaust; it has lasted longer and claimed more lives. I engage people on this topic and many won’t even acknowledge there is a life taken. They won’t define when life begins because their argument falls apart when they do. Many sincere people take the other side. I don’t condemn those who do. I think most who I engage sincerely believe it is something good or something at least necessary. I don’t question their motivations; I just question their judgment. Yet, I am condemned all the time for taking a stance against abortion. People can’t even acknowledge why I might see abortion as murder. Instead, I am the bad guy. I want to control people. I hate women, on and on it goes. I don’t engage in similar attacks. I just try to make my points. But it is difficult when your opposition simply wants to label you, wants to assign motivation, and wants to group you with a large class of people who it is convenient to vilify.

        People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. FORGIVE THEM ANYWAY.
        If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. BE KIND ANYWAY.
        If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. SUCCEED ANYWAY.
        If you are honest nd sincere, people may deceive you. BE HONEST AND SINCERE ANYWAY.
        What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. CREATE ANYWAY.
        If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. BE HAPPY ANYWAY.
        The good you do today will often be forgotten. DO GOOD ANYWAY.
        Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. GIVE YOUR BEST ANYWAY.
        In the final analysis, it is between you and God. IT WAS NEVER BETWEEN YOU AND THEM ANYWAY. (Mother Teresa)

        Liked by 1 person

    • I have no axe to grind with either the Republicans or the Democrats. I’m not an American, so my perspective is different. I’m too far removed – 14,000 Km (9,000 miles) – and I know nothing of the motivation(s) of any American politician, including Biden. What I can discern public statements of politicians and what passes as legislation and regulation from/by politicians.

      What I do see from many American politicians are words about stolen elections, voter fraud, hatred towards those of a different political slant, intolerance to minorities, including a statement from one US politician that gays deserve to be stoned. I see diversity and acceptance education being described as “grooming”. I see legislation making voter registration more difficult. I see rules put in place that results in some electors having to queue for hours to vote. I see the erosion of women’s rights. I see a backsliding of gender diversity. I see the banning of books in schools that don’t sugarcoat American history. I see state governors creating their own book ban lists that are mandated for state schools and libraries. I see gerrymandering of voting district boundaries to favour one or other political party. I watched Trump call for his followers to prevent the certification of the 2020 election results. I saw the invasion of the Capital that almost succeeded in doing so. I see many politicians still claim 1/6 didn’t happen and still claim the election was stolen. I see politicians calling for violence against civil servants for simply doing their job. And here’s the clincher: When I check out who is behind the authoritarianism, partisanship and hatred that passes as politics in the US and is eroding democracy, by far most, but granted not all, has been from the hands and mouths of Republicans.

      I see that the US has been sliding down the the Democracy Index chart for the past 16 years regardless of which party controls Congress or the White House. I see the same country sliding down the corruption index over the same period. These are indicators that all is not well with democracy in America.

      Perhaps fascist is not the best choice of words any more than communist would be applicable to Bernie Saunders, Both those words include very specific and toxic ideas around social order. But what Biden was referring to is an ideology where opponents are demonised, where it’s okay to call for physical harm to them, where diversity is not only criticised but described as an evil. Perhaps the ideology itself it is not fascist, but the methodology being used, particularly by the Republicans, has been successfully employed by fascist movements around the world in the 20th century. It encourages suspicion, hatred, bullying and eventually violence to achieve its end goal: unbridled power.

      And what is so frightening about this is that so many Americans are extremely insular and have little idea of what has been going on outside their borders over the past century, and therefore are unable to recognise what is happening right under their very own noses.

      Liked by 2 people

    • I would suggest that the folk started the current slide to the possible fracturing of the USA was the Right.
      As you may recall from the time that an African American was voted into post of president sections of the Right went into aggressive overdrive on the question of his citizenship. Within his tenure he also had to contend with one republican governor suggesting that US army manoeuvrers in his state threatening:
      https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor_abbott_directs_texas_state_guard_to_monitor_operation_jade_helm_15
      With the advent of Trump’s tenure (voted in by a minority), there was no attempt to reassure the voters of the liberal wings, nor of LGBT nor of race that the administration had their interests at heart. No attempt to rein in the gathering aggression.
      Then do I have to mention the 6th January 2021?
      This stance of don’t upset the Right reminds me ironically on some sections of our UK’s Left who complain that Putin was provoked and had no option but to invade Ukraine.
      The efforts of the Right to impose their views upon other sections of the USA community is becoming a regular feature, which is something that appears obvious to those of us on the outside, who have all too recent experience of the path intolerance leads to.
      It is no use blaming the current president of the USA. This was started by The Right.

      Liked by 1 person

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