It's the Fascism, Stupid with Kevin Elliot

Episode Overview

• The episode argues that the long-running debate over whether the Trump movement is fascist is "functionally over," concluding that the label is accurate and those who warned of the threat have been vindicated.
• It defines fascism not just as authoritarianism, but as a system demanding active public complicity, and identifies these tendencies as a long-standing, unaddressed element within American conservatism.
• The discussion provides new evidence for the fascist diagnosis, citing Trump's rhetoric on territorial expansion and protectionist tariffs that are fundamentally hostile to global capital.
• It critiques analysts, particularly on the "anti-establishment left," who failed to recognize the danger due to rigid intellectual axioms and an unwillingness to admit their political opponents were right.
• The conversation concludes that the pre-Trump political order is gone, and the path forward requires listening to the "alarmists" who correctly identified the threat from the beginning.

Key Concepts

• Fascism is distinguished from authoritarianism by its demand for active public complicity in the regime's ideology and crimes, not just passive obedience.
• The Trump movement is not an anomaly but the culmination of "unaddressed fascist antecedents" that have existed within American conservatism for decades.
• The modern right's "culture war" is driven by a paradoxical psychological need for attention and validation from the liberal culture it claims to despise, framing themselves as victims to justify their aggression.
• Trump's recent rhetoric on territorial expansionism and implementation of protectionist tariffs serve as definitive evidence of fascism, as these actions discipline capital for nationalist purposes rather than serving it.
• A key reason some on the left failed to identify the threat was their adherence to the flawed axiom that fascists always protect capital, a belief contradicted by historical and current evidence.
• With the pre-Trump status quo irrevocably gone, the episode proposes a heuristic for rebuilding: prioritize the analyses of those who correctly identified the danger early on.

Quotes

• At 0:43 - "'That debate, I think now is functionally over.'" - The host states his primary thesis, asserting that the evidence from the Trump years has settled the question of whether his movement is a fascist one.
• At 25:22 - "You are going to be asked to become complicit in the crimes, actions of... of a fascist regime in a way that an authoritarian regime may not actually ask you to." - The speaker clarifies that fascism demands a higher level of personal involvement from citizens than authoritarianism.
• At 26:22 - "That is merely to say that there were unaddressed fascist antecedents in American conservatism going back decades... It means that the roots are deeper and the rot is thicker than just Donald Trump riding down that elevator." - This quote argues that Trump's movement is not an anomaly but the result of long-standing, unresolved fascist tendencies within American conservatism.
• At 1:01:30 - "Liberals will always side with fascists over socialists because fascists protect capital. And this is... one of those things men repeat and repeat until it becomes common sense, but all history refutes." - The speaker critiques a long-held axiom on the anti-establishment left, arguing it has been proven false by both historical fascism and the current political situation.
• At 1:03:42 - "You should listen to the people who saw this coming early." - A speaker offers a clear heuristic for navigating the current political moment: trust the judgment of those who were "alarmist" about the Trump threat from the beginning.

Takeaways

• Fascism's primary danger is its demand for active public complicity, forcing citizens to participate in the regime's ideology and crimes.
• The Trump movement is not a new phenomenon but the outcome of long-standing fascist tendencies within American conservatism that were never properly addressed.
• Policies like protectionist tariffs demonstrate that modern fascism is not merely a tool of capitalism; it seeks to discipline capital to serve a nationalist agenda.
• When navigating political crises, it is crucial to prioritize the voices of those who identified the threat early, as they have demonstrated a more accurate understanding of the situation.