Is Donald Trump a Fascist?

Donald Trump is not the leader of a full-blown fascist movement -- at least not yet. But the threat of a fascist movement in the USA is already visible in outline.

Fascism in the classic sense requires a mass movement of confused and embittered followers, primarily from the middle layers of society, who are facing hard times and sliding down the economic and social ladder. Such conditions of insecurity were felt in Italy after WWI, giving rise to Mussolini and the Blackshirts, and in Germany in the 1930s; and we now see something similar developing in the USA since the financial crash in 2008.

Fascism as a form of capitalist rule only emerges in times of severe social decay and instability. Capital is forced to abandon normal methods of its government to put down dissent and establish 'order.' The capitalists much prefer to shape events through a more benign and consensual type of government, such as through a 'democratic' republic, because milder forms of domination conceal the class and power relationships in society more effectively. But the crises and the resistance call for extraordinary measures.

Today we can see all kinds of social shocks and tremors. Mass unemployment, falling living standards, an uptick in racial oppression, growing inequality, are being accompanied by a questioning of the legitimacy of the authorities and their exploitative system. In such a volatile situation, the fascist leader, backed by a section of Capital, can unleash followers upon scapegoats such as the labor movement, social activists, racial minorities, or equal rights for women. Such assaults give the followers -- who have little awareness of the real causes of their plight -- a convenient target to lash out at, in a twisted form of catharsis. Such was the case with Hitler's attacks on the Jews, social democrats, communists, trade unionists, homosexuals and others in Nazi Germany; and this pattern is the same for all fascist movements. Alarmingly, we see this scapegoating feature in Trump's proto-fascist movement, with his scurrilous and divisive attacks on Muslims, Latinos, Blacks, Women, protesters, etc.

When you consider the number of Klan and far-right sympathizers in the US police and security forces and the military complex, this should also give cause for concern. If those forces of 'law and order' join hands with a misguided and hateful horde (dressed up as 'Patriots' and 'Christians') who are led by a vainglorious demagogue elected to the highest office -- we would have the makings of a fascist regime.

Donald Trump provides simplistic and emotionally-charged 'solutions' that can strike a chord with social ranks suffering downward pressure. But a government led by Trump will not allay the hardships of people or touch the fundamentals of the capitalist system -- the private ownership of the monopolies and the exploitation of labor power for private gain. These are the underlying causes of the deepening crises.

Globalized capitalism in crises can only offer austerity, clawing back of social benefits, falling living standards, trade wars and real wars, and a competitive race-to-the-bottom. There is no magic wand that a figure like Trump can wave to make these basic facts disappear. Rather, Trump's hollow promises and his personality cult are very useful instruments for diverting the anger of a section of the American people into safe channels for the system. They serve to divide people on regressive racial lines, and destroy the popular unity that is necessary for defense of social and economic rights in America. Depending on future developments, Trump's project, or another like it, may also be used as a fascist hammer to demolish popular resistance.

The history of the 20th Century makes it absolutely clear that you have to confront and stop fascism before it gets its hands on the state power, after which it is too late to avoid carnage. That is why the thousands of multi-racial youth who confronted Trump at his aborted Chicago rally on March 11 are deserving of the highest praise.

Fascism is the bared teeth of the capitalist class. It appears on the scene in an acute social crises when the system of exploitation is threatened by the resistance of the oppressed.