Too Late?

Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright wrote an excellent op-ed for the New York Times over the weekend (link here) with the title "Will We Stop Trump Before It’s Too Late?" and the subtitle "Fascism poses a more serious threat now than at any time since the end of World War II."

Donald Trump would never call himself a fascist but he has advocated many positions popular with postwar neo-fascism: ultranationalism, populism, anti-immigration absolutism, and anti-democratic authoritarianism.

Albright writes: "Overseas, rather than stand up to bullies, Trump appears to like bullies, and they are delighted to have him represent the American brand. If one were to draft a script chronicling fascism’s resurrection, the abdication of America’s moral leadership would make a credible first scene."

When Trump trashes a close ally like Germany and Great Britain whilst praising authoritarian regimes in places like Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and the Philippines, Trump sounds more like one of America's adversaries, not its head of state.

Albright has had a front-row seat to fascism in her life. When she was a child, she grew up in Nazi-occupied Prague. As a professor of diplomacy and a seasoned world statesman, who many times has witnessed what results from flourishing freedom and oppressive neo-fascism.

I don't think there's any danger Trump would turn the United States into a neo-fascistic country. What does seem like a real danger, as Albright warns, is that Trump could inspire other authoritarian heads of state to embrace neo-fascism and his behavior offers a tacit approval.

That is a disgraceful sullying of the American promise. The country runs a real danger of no longer being a beacon for the rest of the world, and the United States would be diminished as a result.