EUGENE, OR – President Donald Trump is taking the U.S. down a path of fascism, and the U.S. has already arrived at a state of authoritarianism, according to a recent report by the Civil Liberties Defense Center here.
The report claims President Trump and his administration freely distorts language and facts to appeal to their base, noting the Washington Post’s count of “30,573 lies and misleading claims during Trump’s first tenure” that are also supported by analysis by media companies.
The CLDC article describes this as a “celebration of ignorance” among the politically uninformed who believe the misinformation, and the article directs the reader to learn about some of the commonly used political words President Trump has often used to “keep a population on edge and afraid.”
In an 2024 Arizona rally, President Trump described Kamala Harris as “a Marxist, Communist, Fascist, Socialist.”
As the CLDC article defines, Marxism advocates for a society where wealth, power, and properties are collectively owned and distributed. Marxist theory sees history as a struggle between the working class and ruling class, and argues capitalism will “only lead to the exploitation” of the working class by the ruling class, and capitalism will fall until a revolution comes.
The CLDC report notes socialism advocates for public ownership of key industries like healthcare and education while allowing some private enterprise, functioning within democratic systems, and aims to balance wealth and services for public good.
The CLDC article added communism is derived from Marxism and is described as the final stage of societal development. It advocates for property to be publicly owned, where there is no class, and the state will eventually lose influence on people’s lives. In Communism, people are expected to contribute based on their ability and receive based on their needs.
And, CLDC notes, authoritarianism is a political system where full power is held by a single leader or small group. In authoritarian regimes, freedoms are limited and the political opposition is suppressed.
Fascism, CLDC writes, is a far-right authoritarian ideology marked by strong dictatorial power, extreme nationalism and the suppression of dissent, while rejecting democracy, calling it “weak and inefficient,” and promotes total control of society and the economy.
The CLDC article looked at two known examples of fascist states: Mussolini’s Italy and Hitler’s Germany. Historically, the article writes, fascism often emerges during economic or societal instability, and late-stage capitalism often precedes this.
More recently through the last century, the article noted how the political and economic theories mentioned have “given rise to some of the ugliest regimes and most nightmarish conditions imaginable,” referring to chattel slavery and the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia.
The CLDC notes that such regimes rise by simplifying political dialogue and spreading fear by manufacturing enemies, adding anti-fascist resistance has always persisted in history and continues to this day.
Yet, the CLDC writes that President Trump and his allies use propaganda to demonize these anti-fascist groups, protestors, and allies of marginalized communities, labeling them as threats to the nation.
The article maintains the erosion of norms is an indicator of the rise of fascism, and concludes that the U.S. has already arrived at authoritarianism because President Trump is looking for a third term as President, despite constitutional provisions limiting the presidency to two terms.
