By now you have probably
heard it dozens of times. Donald Trump
has been called a Nazi, a reincarnation of Adolf Hitler, and a danger to our
American democracy. To hear the liberals
tell it, our new president is on the verge of sponsoring a putsch.
As the columnist Tammy Bruce
has pointed out, this is nothing new.
Ronald Reagan was also accused of fascist tendencies and a desire to
overthrow our way of life. He too was
said to be an enemy of the Bill of Rights and an implacable foe of free speech.
Of course, Reagan proved to
be nothing of the sort. Neither is
Trump. His desire to keep potential
terrorists away from our shores is not the same as rounding up Jews and sending
them to concentration camps. Nor is
calling the mainstream media an enemy of the people the same as burning books
and killing journalists.
Why then are so many
liberals so adamant in their denunciation of our chief executive? Could this be a case of projection? Are they seeing in him what is actually a part
of their own character?
Sadly, I think the answer is
yes. I know there are many genuine
patriots on the left side of the aisle.
I also know that many of them would never sanction the strong-arm
tactics of the Nazis. But then again,
many would—and do.
Do you remember how often
the tea party crowd was accused of rioting in order to bring down the
government? Do you recall how frequently
they were castigated for using foul language or intimidating those who disagreed
with them? They did almost none of
that. But you know who does?
Opponents of Trump have not
only shouted down legislators at townhall meetings, they have gone to their
homes to harass them. These folks not
only call the president’s supporters names, they have thrown punches, eggs, and
rocks. They have even closed down
airports in the name of protest.
What is worse, liberals have
repeatedly sought to get those with whom they differ fired from their
jobs. They gleefully ruin careers,
destroy reputations, distort the news, and pervert the legal system. There is almost no line they will not cross
in an effort to win. Does this remind
you of anyone?
Kimberley Strassel of the
Wall Street Journal has recently written a book that should be mandatory
reading for every loyal American.
Entitled The Intimidation Game: How the Left Is Silencing Free Speech,
the subtitle should be How the Left Is Undermining Democracy.
A combination of rogues
gallery and horror story, her work cites numerous Democratic attempts to
pervert honest government. It is, I must
admit, heavy going because she enumerates not just a few, but hundreds of
incidents in which progressive partisans sought to quash democratic opposition.
Both on the state and
federal level, media misrepresentations and outright threats have been used to
cow people into silence. Homes have been
raided, businesses have been audited, and ordinary citizens have been spat
upon. This is not a dialogue about
social policy as is claimed. It is plain
and simple thuggery.
Liberals talk about
protecting our rights, when they mean their rights. They brag about their compassion, when it is
reserved for their allies. These folks
have no hesitation when it comes to insulting or muzzling those who get in
their way.
My relatives in New Jersey,
a deep blue state, keep telling me tales about how they are verbally attacked
by erstwhile friends if they say anything favorable to Trump. Amazingly, their Jewish associates denounce
Trump as anti-Semitic, when it was Obama who put the knife in Israel’s back.
This has become a looking
glass world where those who use Nazi tactics blame those who don’t of deeds
perpetrated by the accusers. Truly
mean-spirited people vulgarly denounce their polite adversaries for being,
guess what, mean-spirited. Why this
isn’t obvious to everyone is beyond me.
Trump is not a danger to our
democracy. Toleration of neo-Nazi
conduct by those who perpetrate, but ostensibly deplore it, is much more alarming. This might lead them to condone the conduct
that ultimately rips our constitution apart.
Melvyn L. Fein, Ph.D.
Professor of Sociology
Kennesaw State University
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