Fascism is an objective thing that exists, and some people fit that description.

"Falling back on comforting fibs, like the notion that political violence is something only the 'other guys' do, is like wrapping yourself in a psychological security blanket—easier, warmer, safer." And cavalier, and dangerous.

"Is that the way things work at your office? You go AWOL, do a bunch of stuff that tanks the business, and your bosses say, 'Would you stop screwing up if we pay you more?'"

"A mixture of the superficially reasonable, the preposterous, and an absurd non sequitur." ICYMI @daliborrohac.bsky.social on Trump's unserious Russian sanctions talk: www.thebulwark.com/p/trumps-lat...

"I think the future of our republic and the future of our party now depends on us building a big-tent party with economic populism and the unrigging of democracy as the two tent poles," said Chris Murphy. There's a lot that formulation leaves out.

"Media outlets committed to liberal democracy should take the side of liberal democracy against authoritarianism. Period. The end."

Jimmy Kimmel isn't just a comedian, he's a pretty mainstream, anodyne figure, which makes the administration's successful attempt to get his show off the air even *more* alarming.

Rep. Jim Himes: "We had the Attorney General of the United States say 'Hate speech is not protected.' The chief law enforcement officer of the United States of America made a factually wrong statement. All speech is protect with some very narrow exceptions."

Rep. Jim Himes on the Pentagon banning the press from covering stories they were not authorized to report: "It is censorship. It's what they do in Beijing. It's what they do in Moscow. It's what they do in Tehran...It is very much at odds with the First Amendment."

Rep. Jim Himes: "I still can't get over the fact that I think for the first time in our history, the U.S. military...is now killing civilians who have been convicted of no crime. There's a reason we do trials in this country."

The Charlie Kirk Rule: if it counted as free speech when Charlie Kirk said it, it counts as free speech for everyone. ICYMI @saletan.bsky.social: www.thebulwark.com/p/charlie-ki...

Rep. Jim Himes: "It is probably the first time in American history...where the U.S. military has deliberately targeted civilians....My testosterone and Trump addled Republican colleagues are just cheering on this barbaric killing."

Rep. Jim Himes: "Having the Defense Department kill alleged drug runners in the Caribbean is illegal...These folks are committing murder — murder defined as killing without a legal basis. I am mystified over why the rest of the chain of command is quite comfortable with it."

Sen. Murphy: "Tom Homan, Trump's border czar, literally accepted a bag of cash—$50,000—and the investigation was dropped when Trump became president. There are two standards of justice now in this country. If you are a friend of the president...you can get away with anything."

Sen. Chris Murphy: "We are quickly turning into a banana republic. POTUS is employing the full power of the federal government—the FCC, the DOJ—in order to punish, lock up, take down off the air all of his political enemies. This is what happens in Iran, Cuba, and China."

Trump on the TikTok deal: "A man named Lachlan is involved...Lachlan Murdoch...Rupert is probably gonna be in the group."

Trump on AOC: "Her philosophy is so bad. She's got a little spunk, she's got a little something that's good...She's a little something, but her philosophy is bad."

Sen. Tim Kaine: "Brian Kilmeade 10 days ago suggested that homeless, mentally ill people should be lethally injected. He apologized...He didn't get pulled off the air."

Q: "Do you believe that President Trump is trying to stifle dissent?" Gov. Josh Shapiro: "Without question. They're trying to stifle dissent....[Trump] made clear that he wants to look at the licenses and certifications for media outlets if they are attacking him."

Gov. Shapiro: "The Supreme Court over centuries of jurisprudence has made clear that hate speech, like it or not, is legal...I think it is a long way to go to say that a comedian on late night TV who tells a joke about POTUS that the president doesn't like...incites violence."

Fetterman on Democrats' budget negotiations: "I would love to restore a lot of those healthcare things. That's the right outcome, but that's a dangerous tactic if you are going to shut the government down."

Sen. Markwayne Mullin: "Jimmy Kimmel said something that was extremely insensitive and a flat out lie about the POTUS...There is no excuse for making a joke, I don't care if you're a comedian or who you are, making a joke about an assassination—there is no room for that at all."

Bash: "Do you believe in free speech?" Sen. Markwayne Mullin: "Absolutely I believe in free speech...There's a thin line between free speech and when it crosses a line and causes violence. When you start calling someone 'fascist'...there is a problem."

Bash: "Your okay with [Trump asking his AG to go after his political enemies]?" Sen. Mullin: "President Trump is very open and transparent with the American people and he speaks his mind...What President Trump is saying is it's time to look into them and hold them accountable for what they said."

Twenty years before MAGA came into existence, Umberto Eco captured it perfectly. He was able to do so because he had a deep understanding of so many elements of fascism.

Q: "Will you fire Pam Bondi if Letitia James is not indicted?" Trump: "No. She's doing a great job." Q: "Have you ever threatened DOJ leadership if they don't prosecute Letitia James or James Comey?" Trump: "No. I don't do that."

Rep. Don Bacon: "There have been some wrong statements made, to say the least — when the attorney general said she was going to go after hate speech...is wrong...The president doing threats against media is also wrong. We don't threaten the media."

@repdangoldman.bsky.social says "stupid" policy decisions from Kash Patel are making us less safe. Watch his interview with @johnavlon.bsky.social on the latest How To Fix It

"It’s the sort of movie that seems destined for cult status (fitting, given the premise of football as a literal death cult) after first-run audiences aren’t sure what to do with its extravagant performances and overblown acting." ICYMI @sonnybunch.bsky.social: www.thebulwark.com/p/him-review...

The conflict over Charlie Kirk's legacy - and his multimillion-dollar politico-media behemoth - has become so serious that members of Congress, Vice President JD Vance, and at least one billionaire are now involved. ICYMI @willsommer.bsky.social: www.thebulwark.com/p/brutal-mag...

"One conservative whose information was included in the leak agreed with some of the sentiments connected to his name during a brief phone conversation, but stated he couldn’t remember filling out the form." We remember it so he doesn't have to!

Time for another round of January 6th revisionism. Aren't they bored of this yet?

Sometimes this administration’s swerves toward open fascism look like deliberate strategy. Other times they read more like a klutzy accident. But with Donald Trump in charge, the dial only turns one way.

Not exactly surprising, but many Latinos who voted for Trump are having second thoughts. ICYMI @adriancarrasquillo.bsky.social: www.thebulwark.com/p/exclusive-...

"Information shapes perceptions, drives alliances, corrodes trust, and determines the resilience and power found in democracies." Putin understands and exploits this better than we do. ICYMI @markhertling.bsky.social: www.thebulwark.com/p/putins-bot...

Q: "Are you willing to rule out boots on the ground to get Bagram back?" Trump: "We won't talk about that. But we're talking now to Afghanistan. We want it back." Q: "Are you willing to rule out boots on the ground?" Trump: "If they don't do it, you're going to find out what I'm going to do."

Q: "Should coverage you don't like be grounds for losing a broadcast license?" Trump: "I think when a network is dishonest, certainly. If they are dishonest because they give you 97% bad publicity or whatever it is, some ridiculous number—ya, I would say that would be grounds."

Q: "Are you criticizing Pam Bondi for not going after your political adversaries?" Trump: "No. I just want people to act. They have to act. And we want to act fast...If they are guilty or if they should be charged, they should be charged. And we have to do it now."

"Healthy political movements do not baby their supporters by tying themselves into pretzels to explain away uncomfortable facts."

All of these excesses can be reined in, if not entirely eliminated, by Congress—or at least by a Congress not under Donald Trump’s thumb. All it needs is the wisdom to recognize its own crucial role in creating this problem. ICYMI Philip Rotner: www.thebulwark.com/p/reining-in...

"It was as if Robert Redford looked at the cinematic landscape, sighed, and said, 'You don’t need all this makeup, all this CGI crap to tell a story. You just need my face.' Would that we could all be so fortunate." ICYMI @sonnybunch.bsky.social: www.thebulwark.com/p/robert-red...

"By no means are Democrats going to go back to the immigration stuff they used to support. And in that way, Trump has perhaps enabled them to be able to pick and choose a little bit." @adriancarrasquillo.bsky.social and @sarahlongwell25.bsky.social discuss Democrats and immigration going forward:

"The existence of the authoritarian playbook implies that one can be evil but sane. But what motivation would a 'sane' person have for destroying the world’s leading democracy in the first place?"

"Bannon even suggested an investigation of Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, who has served as a sort of responsible counterweight to Trump administration demands for revenge after Kirk’s killing....'Cox should be investigated,' Bannon said."

Voters *do* want a strong, orderly border. But they don't want it at any cost - nor do they see Trump's mass deportation campaign as an inherent part of securing the border. @adriancarrasquillo.bsky.social joins @sarahlongwell25.bsky.social in the latest episode of The Focus Group podcast:

"The truth is Harris's team understood that winning the election depended on creating distance from her boss; and in that moment when she had to choose between country and Biden, she chose not to offend Biden."

In the MAGA cultural universe, getting power from wind or the sun is somehow less authentically blue-collar than pulling petroleum out of the ground. As renewables get better, Trump is going to damage our economy over that fiction. ICYMI @citizencohn.bsky.social: www.thebulwark.com/p/trump-econ...

"The National Guard hasn’t been dispatched. But the federal government’s presence is very much felt here, like a chill from the lake. Much of it has settled over immigrant communities." ICYMI @adriancarrasquillo.bsky.social from Chicago: www.thebulwark.com/p/trump-chic...

"Every one of us will be confronted with allies we do not agree with, or even like. Solidarity requires making peace with that discomfort." www.thebulwark.com/p/this-is-ho...

It's like the scene at the end of A Christmas Carol where Scrooge pretends he's about to fire Bob Cratchit and instead gives him a raise, except Bob Cratchit deserved a raise www.thebulwark.com/p/elon-musk-...