Stephen Eric
Bronner
And, so, it
begins—again! Only this time, with new vigor, improved efficiency, and an
all-encompassing agenda. Following his four-year layoff from 2020-24, in which
he licked his wounds while still dominating the media, Donald Trump’s second
presidency has already witnessed a blizzard of executive orders, pardons for
fascists and criminals, promises to roll back the welfare state, overt threats
to American democracy, and actions that endanger the well-being of the planet.
This flurry of activity reflects the sobering truth that, while enough
intelligent people expected him to win the election of 2024, no one believed
that he would win like he did.
People gather in protest against U.S.
President Donald Trump during a demonstration at the Texas State Capitol
on February 5, 2025 in Austin, Texas.(Photo: Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Trump will
undoubtedly attempt to enhance his authoritarian aspirations by subordinating
other branches of power to his will, inspire his base in civil society, and
then, in turn, employ it to increase pressure on governmental institutions in
his behalf. This might produce a transition to fascism, but to claim that
fascism has taken over the United States is a drastic oversimplification. This
empties the word of meaning. We are not yet living in either an authoritarian
dictatorship or a “party-state”—and resistance is still possible. America’s
democratic institutions and traditions are stronger than those in Italy
following World War I or in the Weimar Republic. Institutional checks and
balances still exist, though they are under attack, and nominal respect for our
Constitution remains.
Most
importantly, the military is still independent and no secret police is acting
with impunity outside legal constraints. Were the state “fascist,” I would be
under arrest and the venues that publish my writings would already have been
shut down. Certain members of the “resistance” sometimes like to exaggerate
their courage in the face of authoritarian dangers. That is insulting to those
living in real fascist states who put their lives on the line daily.
“Fascist”
tendencies are apparent in civil society, but it remains contested terrain:
censorship, conformism, segregation, religious intolerance, and racism are
rampant in many more agrarian “red states” where Trump’s base is active. In
urban environments, however, myriad progressive forces challenge them and
interfere with the new administration’s programs with respect to abortion,
immigration, multiculturalism, and other matters. Moreover, independent civic
associations still exist, other loyalties compete with what any fascist
administration would demand, rights of assembly are still exercised, and debate
continues in public forums. However, this is not to deny that civic freedom is
imperiled—and , under Trump’s rule, the dangers seemingly grow greater every
day.
Is the president
a fascist? Yes. Whether he actually knows what that means is an open question,
but his presentation of self and explicit political ambitions justify that
view. His pathological indifference to truth, unsubstantiated claims, blatant
bigotry, thoroughly corrupt inner circle, and celebration of authoritarian
politics is telling. He thinks that he knows better on every issue. He rages
against “enemies of the people,” threatens retribution against his opponents,
and places himself above the law. Trump glories in his cult of personality and
undoubtedly sees himself as Hegel’s “world spirit on a white horse.” It is his
world as far as he is concerned, and the rest of us are simply allowed to live
in it.
If Trump’s
desired transition to some form of fascist state is successful it will have
been enabled by “pragmatic” conservatives, who once foolishly thought they
could act as “adults in the room” and control the upstart. The enablers of
Hitler and Mussolini thought the same thing, and wound up in the same position.
Soon enough the puppet was controlling the puppeteers. The president’s return
to office has been marked by the self-serving use of institutional
opportunities, perverse constitutional interpretations, and loopholes in the
legal system to succeed in becoming the dictatorial presence he believes that
he deserves to be.
Democrats still
fail to appreciate the shrewdness of this New York real estate broker who
closed the ultimate deal. They forget what Max Weber—among the very greatest of
social scientists—knew, namely, that charisma lies in the eye of the beholder.
It has nothing to do with intelligence, or kindness, or humanitarian politics.
It is instead a seemingly magic connection established between the charismatic
personality and those who encounter him. Of course, the magic does not
magically appear. Charisma is always the product of a tumultuous context, and
it is misleading to personalize what is a sociopolitical phenomenon; indeed,
this misperception is precisely what Trump himself wishes to reinforce.
Ultimately, the charismatic personality’s power rests on an ability to express
the political thoughts and emotions of his community during any given crisis.
Keeping the crisis alive thus becomes crucial, and Trump grasps that. Under his
rule, no less than any other fascist, there is always a crisis and there is always
publicity—whether good or bad is immaterial.
Obsessed with
him, no less than ratings, established media enhanced Trump’s charisma and also
provided him with billions of dollars in free publicity. In the process, they
systematically underplayed former President Joseph Biden’s record. Legitimate
criticisms could be made of the bungled withdrawal from Afghanistan, the
president’s Gaza policy, inflation, and more. But they came while virtually
ignoring Biden’s defense of democratic norms in the face of an attempted coup,
his life-saving response to the Covid-19 pandemic, his bold infrastructure
initiative, his protection of the welfare state and healthcare, his role in
generating jobs and higher employment numbers, his reinvigoration of NATO, his
defense of Ukraine, his radical environmental policies, and his heightening of
America’s standing in the world. Biden’s gravitas was shaken by his disastrous
showing in his debate with Trump. Poor packing helped further undermine his
popularity and his presidency to the point where his substitute in the presidential
race of 2024, former Vice-President Kamala Harris, couldn’t decide whether to
embrace her former boss or distance herself from him.
Did this cost
her the election? Perhaps. But it remains unclear what her campaign should have
done instead: Poll numbers for Democrats and Republicans remained remarkably
stable throughout. Not that it matters now. What does matter is that
progressives still have no feasible idea for how to “reach” the most
intellectually apathetic, ill-informed, prejudiced, and plain reactionary
supporters of Trump who—using the colloquial phrase—“just don’t want to hear
it.” The idea that the “message didn’t get out” is ridiculous: Every voter
either knew or should have known what was at stake—I think they did know and
each made his or her decision.
The Democrats
are now faced with a stark choice: Either frighten “independents” and moderates
with the haunting specter of fascism or mobilize those alienated voters who had
formerly been part of their base. Democrats can’t do both at the same time.
They need to make up their minds. Best for them to look in the mirror,
formulate a message, stop trying to convert the collaborators, and inspire
their former friends to return home.
This will
require a radical stylistic change in dealing with the media and the public.
With very few exceptions, such as Jon Stewart’s “The Daily Show” and John
Oliver’s “Last Week Tonight,” the liberal establishment has responded to Fox
News and the rest of Trump’s quasi-fascist propagandists like nerds trembling
before a school-yard bully. CNN, MSNBC, National Public Radio, and the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting are shifting their most critical
newscasters to off hours or simply letting them go. Their hosts and
commentators remain too timid, and high-minded, to deal with the vulgar,
racist, and demeaning rhetoric that has traditionally been used by fascist
insurgents.
Liberal media
cannot again afford to provide the new president with billions in free
publicity by focusing on him, and wringing their hands over his follies, while
ignoring the need for unifying principles and a class agenda. This didn’t work
before and it won’t work now. Trump gained votes among every meaningful
demographic, and his old base remained firm. Meanwhile, identity formations in
the Democratic Party turned against one another—and the wounds are still fresh.
The majority of white women voted against Senator Harris, a woman of color,
along with a record number of Black men, and Latinos concerned about abortion,
empowerment of trans-people, and immigrants. Even worse, perhaps, too many
young people stayed home. Today, the self-styled “resistance” appears lifeless,
a bold programmatic alternative is lacking, and there is no resolve to move
beyond identity politics, soft welfare reforms, and an ideological strategy
that neither offends nor inspires.
Of course,
circumstances may change. Political parties in power tend to lose votes in
midterm elections, and Republicans might suffer the same fate in 2026. However,
fascist parties have traditionally suffered setbacks before assuming power and
there is already whispering that the midterm elections may not take place. Many
are afraid that Trump (who will have served two terms) is preparing for a third
term in 2028, when he will be 82 years old. We are not there yet, but much harm
to democracy will surely have been done by then.
How much depends
on the extent to which institutional checks and balances remain operative.
Trump made 245 federal judicial appointments during his previous tenure and
three to the Supreme Court. The nation’s highest court now has a conservative
majority, and it already provided the president with immunity from virtually
all criminal prosecution. Republicans also hold a slim majority of 219-213 in
the House of Representatives and control the Senate 53-47. There should be no
mistake: These are Trump’s Republicans and they are marching in lockstep. It is
hard to believe that either the House, Senate, or Supreme Court will exercise
checks and balances in a consistent manner.
Trump plans to
“drain the swamp” and hollow out the federal government by firing tens of
thousands of employees from numerous regulatory, cultural, and scientific
agencies and departments. In concert with his bizarre cabinet and agency
appointments to lead cabinet offices and agencies, whose only qualification is
unconditional loyalty to him, this can only lead to bureaucratic anarchy. But
that too is part of the authoritarian playbook. Feeding rivalries among
subordinates and flunkies, like all successful dictators, the ensuing chaos can
only strengthen his position. In addition, purges are being planned for the
Department of Defense, the State Department, various intelligence agencies, the
FBI, and the Department of Justice.
Herein is the
basis for any transition to a more authoritarian state. Fascism is based on the
“unification” of all political institutions—the Nazis called it
“Gleichschaltung”—under the aegis of the (deified) Führer, Duce, or president.
In the context of Trump’s pardons for more than 1,500 convicted
insurrectionists, mostly white supremacist members of the underclass, it is not
difficult to envision a private militia—a militant and violent vanguard loyal
to the person of Trump—that can help bring this unification about. However, it
remains incomplete without the support of elites and, to gain it, Trump has
fashioned an economic agenda that benefits them. Following in the footsteps of
other fascist leaders, indeed, he is selling it to his economically disadvantaged
base through the use of psychological projection and his opponents supposed
betrayal of the national interest.
Insisting that
Democrats are catering to “special interests,” which actually comprise the
popular majority, Trump has forwarded a tax cut that will disproportionally
benefit the 728 billionaires who possess more wealth than half of American
households combined. In the same vein, he has also called for privatizing
public lands, deregulating energy production, and cutting agencies that test
the safety of consumer goods and the standards of food. With regard to his
base, in similar fashion, he is intent on protecting the supposedly real
victims of racism (white Christian men) from further discrimination by
eliminating “diversity, equality, and inclusion” programs that benefit women,
the transgendered, and people of color. For good measure, casting himself as the
primary victim of legal persecution, in spite of being convicted on 34 felony
counts, Trump has pardoned himself and his family along with the disgraced
ex-General Mike Flynn, grifters like Steve Bannon, genuine fascists like
Enrique Torres of the Proud Boys, and others of this ilk. Unleashing the former
insurrections would in a pinch, of course, create the disturbances that only
the president can quell, thus again increasing his own power.
Foreign policy
deserves its own separate discussion, but the unifying thread is already clear.
It is the desire to transform a popular belief that the United States is a
nation under siege into a self-fulling prophecy. It begins with sending 1,500
troops to the southern border in order to prevent an immigrant “invasion.”
Trump has also provoked a tariff war with China, and another with Canada and
Mexico is hanging in the balance. Outrage has already greeted his
saber-rattling over Greenland and the Panama Canal, his withdrawal from the
World Health Organization and the Paris climate accord, and the closing of the
humanitarian aid agency U.S. Agency for International Development.
Infuriating
Egypt and Jordan, two allies fearful of Islamic extremists spilling over their
borders, Trump has called upon them to take in 2.3 million Gazans in order to
clear out Gaza for Israel. What will happen with Russia and Ukraine is
anybody’s guess, but a $177 billion aid package has already been reduced to $76
billion. For the moment, suffice it to say, that Trump’s foreign and domestic
policy aims should converge in a politics that blends conflict with chaos. Our
president surely hopes that this will lead citizens to rally around. him, the
self-proclaimed “savior,” who always puts “America First!”
Creating such
laundry lists of threats and warnings is not the stuff of great journalistic
prose. However, they demonstrate the overwhelming sweep of the Trump project
and the early signs, if not of fascism, then of a new order that will surely
pervert American democracy. Critics need to bare their ideological teeth, unify
competing lobbies, and demand a bold class agenda on par with the “New Deal” of
the 1930s and “the Great Society” of the 1960s. The timidity of the president’s
critics is self-defeating. The bully is still in the schoolyard, and it’s time
for the Democrats to stop being scared of their own shadow. Otherwise the next
four years will turn into eight—and then, if some acolyte takes on Trump’s
mantle, perhaps more.
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