Fascism

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The Trump movement was always authoritarian and illiberal. It indulged periodically in the rhetoric of violence. Trump himself chafed against the restraints of law. But what the United States did not have before 2020 was a large national movement willing to justify mob violence to claim political power. Now it does..

There's a Word for What Trumpism Is Becoming - The Atlantic

• Article, by conservative former speech writer of George Bush, should be read in whole.
  

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Compiled by the States United Democracy Center, Law Forward, and Protect Democracy, the report spotlights alarming provisions of several new laws and proposed bills that would make it easier for political officials to contest—and potentially nullify—election results.

Republicans are laying the groundwork to 'overturn results' of elections: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez - Alternet.org

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There is growing concern that election workers will leave their posts in droves following a 2020 presidential contest that saw an unprecedented rise in violent threats against administrators. Election workers had their homes broken into. Their private information was maliciously posted online. Some fled with their families into hiding. Others faced down armed crowds outside their workplaces and homes. And nearly nine months after Election Day, the threats persist. “It’s absolutely going to lead to an unprecedented exodus of a whole generation, I think, of professional election administrators,” David Becker, executive director and founder of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, told The Hill.

Threats of violence spark fear of election worker exodus | TheHill

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While he was testifying before the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, Metropolitan Police officer Michael Fanone received a threatening voicemail that said “I wish they would’ve killed all you scumbags." Fanone and three other police officers who were at the Capitol on Jan. 6 gave chilling and compelling testimony on Tuesday before the panel tasked with probing the insurrection. The officers recounted harrowing scenes of chaos, violence and destruction from that day. Fanone, during an interview on “CNN Tonight with Don Lemon” hours after the hearing, revealed that he received a threatening, explicit-filled voicemail while he was testifying before the committee.

Officer Fanone shares threatening voicemail he got after Jan. 6 testimony | TheHill

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There is a civil war brewing within the Republican Party in Nevada. According to The Las Vegas Sun, tensions began to rise when members of the Clark County Republican Party (CCRP) expressed concern about the state party's director Michael McDonald who is accused of recruiting members of the far-right group The Proud Boys to run for public office. The move was reportedly an effort to increase the extremist presence in the state's political party. On July 20, CCRP members held a meeting to select officers. However, that meeting was interrupted when individuals affiliated with The Proud Boys crashed it. The publication offered a clear depiction of how the scene erupted..

GOP's civil war in Nevada erupts into 'ugly scene' as far-right extremists try 'to bully their way into a takeover' - Alternet.org

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Some far-right pundits who are critical of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's select committee on the January 6 insurrection have argued that Democrats simply need "get over it" and move on rather than continue to dwell on what happened seven months ago. But one of the problems with that argument is that insurrectionists themselves haven't gotten over the 2020 presidential election, buying into the Big Lie and the debunked conspiracy theory that the election was stolen from former President Donald Trump. And a troubling University of Chicago study finds that almost one in ten Americans favor violence in order to put Trump back in the White House.

The 'adamant insurrectionists': New data reveals the widespread 'radical beliefs' of aggrieved Trump fans - Alternet.org

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Rep. Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio, a conservative Republican and former Ohio State football star who voted to impeach Donald Trump following the January 6 insurrection, has decided not to seek reelection in 2022 — saying that he fears for the safety of his family and that the "toxic dynamics inside our own party" were a "significant factor" in his decision. In an article published by The Bulwark on September 16, Never Trump conservative Tim Miller describes Gonzalez's decision as "an ominous sign for our politics."

"It might be a Trump era cliché to say that 'this is not normal,' but a 36-year-old congressman in his second term doesn't just retire," Miller writes. "That is the start of one's career, not the finish. Moreover, a 36-year-old Republican congressman sure as shit doesn't retire because he is scared Republican voters might hurt his family. That is not normal. At all. It is a flashing siren about just how dangerous the Republican Party has become.""

A GOP congressman’s retirement due to violent threats is 'a deeply ominous sign’ for US politics’: conservative - Alternet.org

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During a December 5 rally in Georgia last year Donald Trump turned his focus to a local official, showing supporters a video of Richard Barron, the Fulton County elections director. "So, if you just take the crime of what those Democratic workers were doing," Trump told attendees, "that's ten times more than I need to win the state." VICE reports it was then that Barron started getting attacked in a deluge of voicemails, many of which "were graphic and specifically called for his death."

'You actually deserve to hang': Elections chief reveals death threats after Trump targeted him - Alternet.org

Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) recently shed light on the damaging effects of Fox News host Tucker Carlson's rhetoric. On Thursday, October 21, the Democratic lawmaker took to Twitter with an audio clip of a Trump supporter attacking him for his remarks praising the U.S. Capitol Police officer who killed Capitol rioter Ashli Babbitt. With the disturbing audio clip, Swalwell discussed what he describes as "the Tucker Carlson effect. "Listen to this. It's the Tucker Carlson effect," Swalwell explained. "Tucker attacks me. His fans respond with threats to kill my family. And Tucker knows exactly what he's doing."

'The Tucker Carlson effect': Rep. Swalwell exposes disturbing 'threats' he got after the Fox host's attacks - Alternet.org

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New public opinion research from the nonprofit Public Religion Research Institute, part of its 12th annual American Values Survey, has returned alarming findings. Close to one-third of Republicans in the survey, or 30%, agreed with the statement that "true American patriots may have to resort to violence in order to save our country." That was more than the combined total of Democrats and independents who say the same thing (at 11% and 17%, respectively)..

An 'alarming finding': Many Republicans now ready to support violence - Alternet.org

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The supervisor of a warehouse where voting machines are stored in Philadelphia has filed a lawsuit against former President Donald Trump, his personal attorney Rudy Guiliani, Jenna Ellis, local Republican officials and other political advisors in his county. According to Politico, an attorney has filed a lawsuit on behalf of James Savage, who works as a voting machine warehouse custodian in Delaware County, Penn. As the voting warehouse supervisor, Savage reportedly "managed the storage, security, programming, testing, and delivery of all voting equipment in Delaware County." Savage's "position did not vest the Plaintiff with any ability to conduct vote tabulation whatsoever," according to his attorney. However, the 60-page lawsuit attributes Savage's failing health to the outrage he faced after the presidential election. Savage noted that he "suffered two heart attacks and has regularly received threats." "Simply put, Mr. Savage's physical safety, and his reputation, were acceptable collateral damage for the wicked intentions of the Defendants herein, executed during their lubricious attempt to question the legitimacy of President Joseph Biden's win in Pennsylvania," said Savage's attorney, J. Conor Corcoran.

Pennsylvania Voting official sues Trump and Giuliani for months-long slander effort after 2020 election - Alternet.org