Trump and Authoritarianism: Debunking the Absurd Narrative

It is astonishing just how much political capital the Radical Left has squeezed from the ridiculous assertion that Republicans, especially Donald Trump, are actively pursuing an Authoritarian form of government. 

In fact, after Trump was projected winner of the Iowa Caucus on Monday, Rachel Maddow made the following delusional assessment: 

“Trumpism is sometimes what we call it. MAGA movement is probably a better way to do it. But there is an authoritarian movement inside Republican politics that isn't being bamboozled by Trump. They are pushing Trump to get more and more extreme."

My friends, this is absurd in every conceivable way. 

This should go without saying, but more often than not, Trump governed as a conservative constitutionalist who respected individual liberty. Of course, there were times he was disappointing, but those times were quite rare. 

Authoritarians do not preoccupy themselves with cutting taxes, eliminating bureaucratic regulations, defending free markets, and promoting liberty – especially religious liberty. 

On the contrary, they constantly seek to grow the government bureaucracy, increase dependency, govern by coercion or force, and control the economy. 

In other words, those who are actively pursuing true Authoritarianism today are the Radical Leftists running the Democrat Party. 

When I studied political science in college, it was generally accepted that the traditional Left-Right political spectrum accurately portrayed the range of political ideologies.

On the left end of the scale, these Leftist academics place Communism and Socialism. And on the right end of the span, we find Conservatism, Libertarianism, and Fascism. One of those things is certainly not like the other two, huh?

This political scale is faulty and does not accurately portray the continuum of political viewpoints. While a full analysis of this would take much more room than I’ve allowed myself in this column, suffice it to say that the underlying assumption of those who created the continuum was that every political group seeks to force its viewpoint upon others. And, according to these academics, the only question political scientists should entertain in order to place an ideology on the continuum is whether the ideology finds all human beings to be fundamentally equal in value or not. 

Now, don’t get me wrong: this is a valid question for any worldview and ideology to address. And it’s imperative that we embrace an ideology that firmly believes that all people have intrinsic value, bestowed upon them by their Creator – just as the Founders believed. 

But when we think about the core differences in political ideologies, the most fundamentally important question we must answer is this: do you believe in liberty or government control? 

I have long held the position that the traditional Left-Right political spectrum incorrectly frames the vast array of political ideologies out there today. 

It’s much more helpful if we view the political spectrum as a range of how much force each ideology excuses or permits. 

At one end of the gamut we should find ideologies that embrace individual liberty. This end of the continuum would not be home to any big government ideology, like Communism, Socialism, and Fascism. Instead, these statist ideologies find themselves at the other end of the gamut – together. 

These ideologies favor centralized control of the economy and society – and they are at odds with individual liberty and free markets. 

Thomas Paine, known as the Father of the American Revolution, was right when he said government was, at best, a necessary evil. 

Our Founders understood this truth. It’s why they embraced limited government, the separation of powers, and the Bill of Rights. And it is a big reason why America has flourished as a shining city on a hill. 

I do not deny that America is in an existential crisis today. But the real threat to America isn’t coming from those branded as ‘dangerous to our democracy’ by the Radical Left. 

The real threat to our constitutional republic comes from those who desire and pursue a larger, more powerful government. 

Government, my friends, is force. More government means more force. And more force means less liberty. And less liberty is completely at odds with how we are created to live. 

If Rachel Maddow truly understood Authoritarianism as she assures us she does, she would be actively opposing the Democrat Party Platform, President Biden, and the vast majority of legislation proposed by Democrats today. 

Instead, she would be echoing the things I write about in this column or talk about on our talk radio show. She would talk about shrinking government, cutting spending, decreasing federal control, and promoting individual liberty at every turn. 

But she’s not. 

Then again, it’s not that ‘our democracy’ is under attack from Republicans. It’s that our personal liberty is under assault from Radical Leftists running today’s Democrat Party – the very folks Maddow supports and empowers. 

Conservative, not bitter.
Todd