Trump's New VP Pick Called Trump "America's Hitler"
Donald Trump speaks at the Faith & Freedom Coalition conference in Washington DC on 22 June 2024. JD Vance at the capitol in Washington DC on 15 November 2022. Composite: Getty Images
JD Vance called out Trump's fascism before shamelessly embracing it
by QASIM RASHID
Hours after a registered Republican white male shooter with a legally purchased firearm shot at Donald Trump, Ohio Senator JD Vance tweeted the below:
In particular, Vance condemned the shooting and declared it the result of the Biden campaign’s premise that “President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs.” There’s only one problem with Vance’s allegation. That is, it wasn’t President Biden’s 2024 Presidential campaign that loudly compared Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler—it was JD Vance himself in 2016.
Let’s Address This.
JD Vance publicly declared in response to Donald Trump’s first run for President:
I go back and forth between thinking Trump might be a cynical asshole like Nixon who wouldn’t be that bad (and might even prove useful) or that he might be America’s Hitler. How’s that for discouraging?
Vance additionally described Trump as “idiot,” “noxious,” and “reprehensible.” I have to say I agree. Therefore, while Vance now speaks of the need to decrease political violence and dangerous political rhetoric—when unclouded by the promise of unimpeachable power—JD Vance himself compared Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler. And now Vance remarkably blames others for agreeing with him, when he should be taking a victory lap for calling out Trump’s fascism before most anyone else on the right did.
Since comparing Trump to Hitler, Vance has of course aggressively flipped the script, and now proudly embraces Donald Trump and his fascism. And now, Donald Trump rewards that loyalty as only a fascist in chief could—by selecting JD Vance as his vice president running mate for the 2024 election.
Here are the three takeaways to keep in mind.
First, this is a stark reminder that fascism has no principles, no morals, no values—except achieving the goal of a raw power grab. And thus, despite recognizing that Donald Trump is “America’s Hitler,” Vance has no problem embracing that fascism as a means to gain access to power. Do not expect fascists to live by their word, because their code is not tied to any word, but to what gets them in power.
Second, this is a stark reminder of just how badly corporate and dark money has decimated our fragile democratic republic. JD Vance didn’t just flip the script and start supporting Trump despite recognizing his fascism, he did so with an absurd $15 million boost from a right wing billionaire. The Citizens United decision has wreaked havoc on our politics. And this is not only a Republican problem. I ran for Congress against a Democrat named Bill Foster who is already worth tens of millions of dollars—and despite that—Foster still shamelessly took millions from banks, big oil, and big pharma, before voting with Donald Trump and Republicans to deregulate banks, promote drilling, and repeal key parts of the ACA.
Third, this is a reminder that fascists don’t play by the rules and instead notoriously eschew responsibility or accountability for their actions. This is why despite the fact that the shooter who made an attempt on Trump’s life is a registered republican, white male US citizen, operating a legally purchased firearm—MAGA Republicans still blame anyone but themselves. Instead, they are now blaming DEI. As political violence increases in America—manufactured by MAGA extremists—they will be sure to blame anyone but themselves, and we risk seeing a spike in anti-Black, anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant, antisemitic, anti-LGBTQ, and misogynistic hate crimes.
Our response to this rising fascism requires us to elevate our work to uphold justice. We cannot expect to simply win by voting on Election Day. We must activate, organize, register American citizens to vote who have not voted before, and stop enabling politicians who are funded by billion dollar corporations instead of the American people.
JD Vance is another addition to the Project 2025 fascist manifesto. Vance should be careful. I heard the last guy who had his job had to quit after he was almost hanged on Capitol Hill. By accepting Trump’s invitation to be his new VP, and per Vance’s own words—Vance himself has committed to electing “America’s Hitler.”
Indeed, how’s that for discouraging?
[ED.: or enraging!]