Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Republicans want to make it harder to vote and easier for them to cheat.

If you thought you’d already seen people saying the stupidest things possible on the internet, prepare yourselves.

President Biden is doing good where he can, and getting it done.

Can we lighten up on the doomsday scenarios?

I’d try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

You don’t get rid of your umbrella while it’s still raining.

Narcissists are always shocked to discover other people have agency.

People are weird.

It may be funny to you motherfucker, but it’s not funny to me.

Republicans firmly believe having an abortion is a very personal, very private decision between a woman and J.D. Vance.

Ron DeSantis, the grand wizard, oops, governor of FL.

Republicans are the party of chaos and catastrophe.

It’s always darkest before the other shoe drops.

I like you, you’re my kind of trouble.

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

Jesus, Mary, & Joseph how is that election even close?

Too often we confuse noise with substance. too often we confuse setbacks with defeat.

I desperately hope that, yet again, I am wrong.

“Loving your country does not mean lying about it’s history.”

There are consequences to being an arrogant, sullen prick.

Maybe you would prefer that we take Joelle’s side in ALL CAPS?

Chutkan laughs. Lauro sits back down.

A democracy can’t function when people can’t distinguish facts from lies.

Fuck that bum, let’s go Joe!

You are here: Home / Politics / GOP Death Cult / Monday Evening Open Thread: “Semi-Fascism” Is the Polite Version

Monday Evening Open Thread: “Semi-Fascism” Is the Polite Version

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The professional Wingnut Wurlitzer embraces its imaginary victimization (and genuine fascism):

Good for Charlie Crist:

Reader Interactions

114Comments

  1. 1.

    Baud

    Trump’s movement is antidemocratic, authoritarian, nationalist, militarist, antintellectual, hierarchical, xenophobic, protectionist, & corporatist. The only thing unfascist about them is their indiscipline.

    And their hygiene.

  2. 2.

    Baud

    I’ve never, ever seen a mainstream reporter so much as comment on Republicans calling even the most moderate Dems “socialists” and “communists

    Or child traffickers.

  3. 3.

    Jersey Tomato

    All of this boo-hooing about Biden being a big meanie comes from the party that literally codified shit-talking about political opponents. Remember when Newt Gingrich, in his role as Speaker, distributed a list of names and epithets to be used by the Republican caucus when referring to Democrats? “Sick,” “demented” “evil” etc., etc. etc. ? Back then, “people in the know” thought it was a  bold stroke of political gamesmanship. I wonder what’s changed?

  5. 5.

    Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman)

    I’ve never, ever seen a mainstream reporter so much as comment on Republicans calling even the most moderate Dems “socialists” and “communists” so it’s gonna be really maddening when they hit the fainting couches over Biden’s “semi-fascist” comment.

     

    It’s because Democrats still have a rep for being polite and Trump absolutely shredded any Republican reputation for being polite and normalized being abusive on their part.

  9. 9.

    MattF

    It’s a semi-stupid controversy. Fascism differs from country to country and depends a lot on national history, so it is hard to define precisely, but it -does- exist. If someone’s argument against ‘semi-fascism’ implies that American fascism doesn’t exist, then that someone’s argument is incorrect.

  10. 10.

    trollhattan

    Imagine a world where “RNC Research” actually researched Republicans? Boy, would they be surprised.

  11. 11.

    RaflW

    No surprise at all that Hamdi writes for The Atlantic. But I guess I’d thought Brookings wasn’t quite such an excuser of facsism in America. Dang.

  12. 12.

    RaflW

    More seriously, though, I think GOP operatives behind the scenes are flipping out because they never, ever expect Dems to get out of the defensive crouch. Consiglieres like Hamdi are all about trying to shove Biden back down on his haunches.

  13. 13.

    trollhattan

    “A Labor Day weekend to die for”

    Holy fvck, just checked the forecast, which predicts 111 for Sunday. I’m-a gonna look like Charlie Crist myself. Not the nice suit, mind.

  14. 14.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Jersey Tomato:

    All of this boo-hooing about Biden being a big meanie comes from the party that literally codified shit-talking about political opponents. Remember when Newt Gingrich, in his role as Speaker, distributed a list of names and epithets to be used by the Republican caucus when referring to Democrats? “Sick,” “demented” “evil” etc., etc. etc. ?

    Yes.

  15. 15.

    Darrin Ziliak (formerly glocksman)

    @MattF:

    If someone’s argument against ‘semi-fascism’ implies that American fascism doesn’t exist, then that someone’s argument is incorrect.

    One name proves American fascism exists: Smedley Butler.

  18. 18.

    trollhattan

    @RaflW: IMHO this is a good read, both because the Dems really are disunder-rocking and because at least the smart Republicans know Trump has them in a corner inside a Klein bottle.

  19. 19.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    If you believe the Republican Party is fascist, then it would require you to believe that a legal ban on the GOP is justified.

    I don’t know how to make GIFs or memes, but if I did I would turn to the early 80s movie Arthur and have John Gielgud saying, with equal parts exasperation and contemptuous indifference, “Who is this person?”

  20. 20.

    SpaceUnit

    If the most threatening thing ever to you is anti-fascism there’s a pretty good chance you’re a fascist.

  22. 22.

    trollhattan

    @mrmoshpotato:

    :)

    Been thinking back to his debate with Batboy when the latter was all het up about not having a tiny A/C inside his lectern, or whatever the hell that nonsense was. Of course he went on to win, so thanks again, Florida.

  25. 25.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Baud: or secret-muslim Manchurian candidates smuggled into Hawaii in swaddling clothes from Indonesia run by… I don’t know… KAOS? Soros?

  27. 27.

    MattF

    Just as a side note- I (finally!) learned to spell ‘fascist’ correctly via commenting on Dick Cheney.

  36. 36.

    dmsilev

    Florida Man moves to Pennsylvania:

    His emotional support animal is an alligator. They sleep in the same bed.

    Joseph Henney’s emotional support animal WallyGator goes with him almost everywhere, from the grocery store to walks in the park. They hug each other and sleep in the same bed. WallyGator is an alligator.

    “When he turns his nose toward you, that means he expects a kiss,” said Henney, 69, who goes by Joie (pronounced “Joe”) and lives in Jonestown, Pa., about two hours from Philadelphia. “He’s super sweet-natured.”

    The two watch television together on the couch, and when Henney takes him to the farmers market, WallyGator gives hugs to shoppers — as long as they are okay with being that close to a 70-pound reptile with a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth.

  38. 38.

    Cameron

    What else are we supposed to call those truckers parading around DC?  And after Labor Day all the college-educated suburbanites will be down there holding SUV-fascist rallies, right?

  41. 41.

    bbleh

    What leaves me a bit gobsmacked is that some Republicans are whining about the “semi” part and letting the “Fascist” part slide.  Like, that’s what bothers you?  Or is it some deep politics-fu that Dark Brandon has employed, so they are distracted by the feint and miss the killing blow?  Or is it that they’re basically okay with being called “Fascist” and they’re just quibbling for quibbling’s sake?

    But any way you look at it … it is certainly Out There now.

  42. 42.

    dmsilev

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    Look, he’s certified and everything:

    But he went home that day with a letter from the doctor, stating that WallyGator qualified as an emotional support animal.

    Henney filled out an application on the U.S. Service Animals website, and once it was approved, he received a certificate along with a harness and leash for his alligator. WallyGator is required to be certified every year, he said.

    Even has a harness! No vest, though. What more could you ask for?

  45. 45.

    bbleh

    @dmsilev: @Omnes Omnibus: @Baud: @Jim, Foolish Literalist: If you had ANY idea what that ‘gator has suffered to take on the role of Ambassador to the Monkeys — the separation from family and home, the physical discomforts, the indignities…!  

    Some day in the future, when the monkeys have destroyed themselves and returned the Earth to an overheated swamp, and the reptiles again reign supreme,  s/he will be lauded as the visionary hero s/he is!

  46. 46.

    gene108

    Semi-fascist is a good term.

    Republicans have fascist tendencies that really really came forward on J6.

    The “semi-“ part of fascist comes from the fact Republicans are trying to overthrow a very old, and (so far) pretty stable constitutional democracy.

    They’ve all come up through generations of democratic governance. They don’t fully grasp what totalitarianism would entail.

    I don’t think a lot of high ranking Republican politicians realize that a fascist totalitarian state has only one Boss. Congress can still have some say in what gets done, but the Boss has final say over everything. All the little Republican presidential wannabes like Cruz, Rubio, DeSantis, Christie, etc. are shit out of luck, if they aren’t the Boss.

    Whatever power they have now as a Senator or Governor won’t matter, because the Constitution no longer governs the country.

  47. 47.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @dmsilev: boy that story is, as the internet says, a journey

    “During a hot summer, he’s nice and cool to sleep with,” he said.

    ETA: even Carl Hiaten never thought to give Skink a pet gator

  54. 54.

    The Thin Black Duke

    Uh, has anyone here seen Nope? Remember the scene where the monkey on the dumb TV sitcom isn’t docile or obedient anymore?

  58. 58.

    kalakal

    @trollhattan: It’s not studio lighting either, he really looks like that. On the other hand compared to another local, Hulk Hogan, he looks nondescript. Hogan looks unreal.

    So far I think Crist is doing great, he’s hitting all the right notes and playing it as a contrast in character between himself the joyless, petulant bully that is DeathSantis.

  59. 59.

    dmsilev

    I’d be remiss if I didn’t share the top-rated comment from that story:

    and then one day, Joie became WallyGator’s nutritional support animal… ;-)

  61. 61.

    The Thin Black Duke

    @eddie blake: Now imagine the Asian kid as an allegory for how Hollywood marginalizes POC. He’s unable to move on from that awful day in his childhood. He romanticizes his trauma.

  63. 63.

    kalakal

    I’m really pleased with Biden for calling the MAGAs out. For years these gits have had no real push back on a national basis. If we want people to get fired up to oppose the MAGAs they need leadership and people need to know they’re not alone, that the rule of law does mean something, that the Dem leadership can and will fight for them. The last few years have sometimes seemed like an excercise in unilateral disarmament, in one sided adherence to norms and rules, in ‘civility’. Well done Joe! Fuck the fascists, whatever their fractional quotient

  65. 65.

    eddie blake

    @The Thin Black Duke:  and monetizes it in an attempt to process the trauma.

    which is also what studios have done to people of color for decades, monetize their trauma. all of the main characters in the movie are looking to hustle, to find their golden ticket.

    i thought it was a fascinating picture, multileveled, metatextural and immaculately shot. i really liked it.

  66. 66.

    prostratedragon

    @dmsilev:  I’m reminded of the story a family friend told of a call she made on someone. The host had a large apartment filled with various bric-a-brac and actual artworks from wide travelling, including some taxidermy. Ms. M. had made herself comfortable on a couch when the host said, reprovingly, “Oscar!” and the putatively stuffed gator stretched across the back of the sofa got up and scurried off.

    Somehow that story seems a good metaphor for our betters who have made themselves so accomodated to “semi-“fascism.

  68. 68.

    Geminid

    @trollhattan:

     

    @kalakal: Crist’s skin tone may at least partly come from his ethnic heritage. Wikipedia tells me that his father was part Greek Cypriot, part Lebanese. The father’s family name was originally Christopolous.

  71. 71.

    JoyceH

    News reports that Tony Ornato has left the Secret Service. How soon before he shows up on the Trump payroll?

  74. 74.

    The Thin Black Duke

    @eddie blake: Even better, OJ, Emerald and Angel survive the experience because they recognize the dehumanizing game that Hollywood aka White America is playing and refuse to play by its’ toxic rules. It subverts the ancient bigoted tropes of Negros in movies made by white people by having people of color who have agency. Their lives aren’t orbiting around White America’s narrow expectations. Nope is fucking brilliant.

  76. 76.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @lgerard:

    I had no idea anti-fluoridation was still a thing. I remember its being a controversial issue when I was a kid (late 40s-early 50s). ETA: Haven’t even thought about fluoride in water for decades now.

  77. 77.

    different-church-lady

    To
    say that MAGA-ism is semi-fascism is
    effectively to say that tens of millions
    of Americans are semi-fascists

    So, he’s… uh… telling the truth?

  78. 78.

    Shana

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: Speaking of Soros, I saw a tweet or two from Warren Buffett over the weekend where he sounded pretty Democratic and I was struck by how the GQP never goes after him the way they do Soros. Wonder why that is?

  79. 79.

    C Stars

    @prostratedragon: This is a great story. And instructive. Now let us hope that the gator of semi-fascism meets the harpoon of democracy.

     

    But not Wallygator. He’s so CUTE  Ｏ(≧▽≦)Ｏ

  80. 80.

    eddie blake

    @The Thin Black Duke: i also like how the flying people eater is basically a metaphor for an insatiable consumerist society. the opening of the picture gives us its perspective. the monster is us, the audience. nietzsche would be proud.

    (i also liked the nice tip of the hat to the akira bike slide)

    yeah, nope is really good. total “fuck yeah!”

  83. 83.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @David 🌈 ☘The Establishment☘🌈 Koch:

    I’m sorry to say that Dr. Ruth is one of those people about whom, when they’re mentioned, my immediate reaction is “They’re still ALIVE?”

    I happened to be in NYC for meetings in June 2003, and a few of us went to dinner at some fancy place in or near Rockefeller Center. At the table next to ours was a very happy group of people celebrating the 75th birthday of Dr Ruth. Everyone in the restaurant sang “HB” when the servers brought out her cake, so we did too.

  86. 86.

    Suzanne

    (Semi-) Fascists. Deplorables. Clinging to guns and religion. The poorly educated. Dead-Enders.

    I’ll use whatever term they like. They’re all accurate.

  88. 88.

    Lacuna Synecdoche

    @gene108:

    They’ve all come up through generations of democratic governance. They don’t fully grasp what totalitarianism would entail.

    I’m not sure that makes it “semi” fascist. Fascists always expect their fascist government to respect the Herrenvolk’s privacy. In their minds, it’s only all the degenerate sub-humans (i.e., non-revanchists) that deserve and need total surveillance.​
    Honestly, I kind of wish Biden had left off the “semi” part, or maybe replaced it with “proto” – which is at least a little more specific, though I’m not even sure that’s accurate anymore: The GOP really is full-blown fascist at this point.

  90. 90.

    Scout211

    @JoyceH: Interesting. He says he isn’t going to work for the Trump family. Yep. That’s what he says. Hmmm
    Link

     

    “I did retire today to pursue a career in the private sector. I retired from the U.S. Secret Service after more than 25 years of faithful service to my country, including serving the past five presidents. I long-planned to retire and have been planning this transition for more than a year,” Ornato said in a statement to CNN.

    Ornato told CNN he has not taken a role with the former President or any of his companies. He declined to name his new employer.

  91. 91.

    dmsilev

    I’m sure we’ll hear a lot more about this over the next few days, but here’s a first heads-up:

    Biden to deliver prime-time address on democracy Thursday

    President Biden will deliver a prime-time address Thursday on the fight for democracy in America and “the continued battle for the soul of the nation,” a White House official said Monday, an address that is likely to confirm his growing rhetorical emphasis on the anti-democratic forces he sees as capturing much of the Republican Party.

    Speaking at Philadelphia’s Independence National Historical Park, the president is expected to highlight his administration’s achievements and argue that the country’s democratic values will be at stake during the midterm elections.

    “He will talk about the progress we have made as a nation to protect our democracy, but how our rights and freedoms are still under attack,” the official said. “He will make clear who is fighting for those rights, fighting for those freedoms, and fighting for our democracy.” The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the content of the speech.

  92. 92.

    A woman from anywhere (formerly Mohagan)

    @Omnes Omnibus: I read the original story and this is quite a mellow, friendly (!) alligator.  The guy is experienced in rescuing abandoned “pet” alligators that grew a little too big for the knotheads who thought an alligator would be a good pet, and he noticed this one was really mellow, and the relationship grew from there. Even he admits this is an almost unique alligator.

  94. 94.

    RSA

    @Baud: Exactly.  I’ve put up with my political party being described as socialist and communist my entire adult life.  “Semi-fascist” is small beer.

  95. 95.

    kalakal

    @HumboldtBlue: oh jeez the flags.

    And those bloody stupid  stupid car window decals.

    Also, I don’t think the original fascists were known for self sinking boats

  96. 96.

    Suzanne

    @RSA: I’m old enough to remember like six whole months ago when they called us “groomers”. They can go die on that fainting couch over there.

  97. 97.

    Scout211

    Is this new? From Rolling Stone

    ON THE FBI’S list of documents seized from Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, item 1a is listed solely as “info re: President of France.” For Trump, that has been a subject of intense — and tawdry — interest for years.

    Specifically, Trump has bragged to some of his closest associates — both during and after his time in the White House — that he knew illicit details about the love life of French President Emmanuel Macron, two people with knowledge of the matter tell Rolling Stone. And the former president even claimed that he learned about some of this dirt through “intelligence” he had seen or been briefed on, these sources say.

    It’s not clear whether the Macron-related document the FBI seized during the raid had anything at all to do with the French president’s personal life. Nor is it clear whether the information on Macron seized from Mar-a-Lago is derived from U.S. intelligence collection or even classified.

    But the mere revelation of its existence triggered a trans-Atlantic freakout, according to two other sources familiar with the situation. And Trump’s prior talk about Macron’s allegedly “naughty” ways that “[not] very many people know” only intensified those concerns. Both French and U.S. officials worked to figure out precisely what Trump had on Macron and France’s government, and if any of it was sensitive in nature, the sources said. The officials in both nations wanted to know if this discovery signified some kind of national-security breach — or if it amounted to a frivolous, but stolen, keepsake.

  102. 102.

    dexwood

    ​

    @JoyceH: ​
      Hah! like he never left it. Probably still waiting for the first check, though, given Traitor trumps non-payment history.

  105. 105.

    David 🌈 ☘The Establishment☘🌈 Koch

     

    @Scout211: Not surprising. Dump is cheap and disloyal.   Look at how he buried the mother of his daughter-wife in a disgraceful pauper’s grave.

    This seems more like he got shit canned by the new head of secret service after the damning testimony by Cassidy Hubbard.

  106. 106.

    mrmoshpotato

    @El Muneco:

    “I didn’t spend 8 years in ‘Evil Medical School’ to be called _Mr._ Evil…” 

    Yeah, but you’re only asking for 1 million dollars in ransom.  So, how about we call you Dr. Dumbass?

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