‘Fascist’ is a Harris closing argument against Trump. Will the label stick?

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“Fascist.”

The word has been tossed around so much lately – mostly by Democrats trying to disqualify former President Donald Trump in the eyes of voters – as to be rendered just another slur in an epic electoral slugfest.

Why We Wrote This

Democrats and some of Donald Trump’s own former aides are calling him a fascist; Trump allies say it’s the Biden-Harris administration that has curtailed liberties. Left in the middle may be voters trying to see reality through all the apocalyptic rhetoric.

“Fascism” can be a stand-in for “dictatorship” or “autocracy.” Mr. Trump’s longest-serving White House chief of staff, retired Gen. John Kelly, said recently that he believed his former boss’s approach met an online definition of fascism. Vice President Kamala Harris was expected to make a similar case Tuesday evening from the Ellipse – where then-President Trump delivered his Jan. 6, 2021, speech that preceded the storming of the U.S. Capitol by his supporters.

Trump allies say the accusations of “fascism” are reckless and have endangered Mr. Trump’s safety, inspiring two assassination attempts. Moreover, they say it’s the Biden-Harris administration that has actually governed like fascists, policing speech online and using the legal system to try to take down a political rival.

It’s not clear that the escalation of rhetoric will sway many votes. But one week before Election Day, with polls showing a dead heat, any voters who change their minds – or are motivated or de-motivated to cast ballots – could be consequential.

“Fascist.”

The word has been tossed around so much lately – mostly by Democrats trying to disqualify former President Donald Trump in the eyes of voters – as to be rendered just another slur in an epic electoral slugfest.

“Fascism” can be a stand-in for “dictatorship” or “autocracy.” Mr. Trump’s longest-serving White House chief of staff, retired Gen. John Kelly, said recently that he believed his former boss’s approach met an online definition of fascism: “a far-right authoritarian, ultranationalist political ideology and movement, characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hierarchy.”

Why We Wrote This

Democrats and some of Donald Trump’s own former aides are calling him a fascist; Trump allies say it’s the Biden-Harris administration that has curtailed liberties. Left in the middle may be voters trying to see reality through all the apocalyptic rhetoric.

Vice President Kamala Harris was expected to make a similar case in what the campaign was billing as her closing argument Tuesday evening from the Ellipse – the very spot near the White House where then-President Trump delivered his Jan. 6, 2021, speech that preceded the storming of the U.S. Capitol by his supporters.

Trump allies say the accusations of “fascism” are reckless and have endangered Mr. Trump’s safety, inspiring two assassination attempts. Moreover, they say it’s the Biden-Harris administration that has actually governed like fascists, policing speech online and using the legal system to try to take down a political rival.

It’s not clear that the escalation of rhetoric will sway many votes. Polls show that for most voters, the future of American democracy ranks well behind the economy, immigration, and abortion as a voting issue.

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