Is it Accurate to Call Trump a Fascist?

“Trump and his administration couldn’t be farther from Nazis! It’s the left who would have supported Hitler!”

This is an ongoing debate for people from both sides of the political line. I’ve read that fascism is a far left movement, a far right movement, a socialist movement, and so on and so forth. So, uh, what is it really?

In this post, I’ll examine a brief history of fascism’s roots and early adopters. I’ll examine modern fascists groups, and key characteristics that “make” a fascist a fascist. Finally, I’ll aggregate my findings and discuss where I think the Trump administration falls on the fascist scale.

The first two sections of this are going to be DENSE. For a shorter version with just comparisons between Trump’s Administration and previous fascist regimes, skip to here.

The Italian Roots of Fascist

Italy have given us a lot of wonderful things. Fettuccini alfredo, pizza, da Vinci, and high quality leather products to name a few.

Unfortunately, Italy also was the birthplace of fascism. To understand the birth of fascism, we need to understand the man who created it – Benito Mussolini.

Benito Mussolini was born to staunch socialist parents. They named him after the first Indigenous President of Mexico, a Liberal by the name of Benito Juarez. For a large portion of his young life, Mussolini adhered to and supported the Socialist party just as his parents did. However, he began to grow disenfranchised with Socialism when they party’s tactics failed to insight what Mussolini really wanted to see: a revolution.

According to the BBC, Mussolini fought in the first world war as a bersaglieri (a corps of sharpshooters). When he returned home, he was a distinct anti-socialist, and started advocating for Italy to accept a dictator as early as 1918. Later speeches make hints that his goal is to be that dictator.

His rise to power involved gathering other out-of-work and traumatized WWI vets to his side. He had them wear black shirts, which became the de-facto uniform of this makeshift army (thus making it a symbol of the newly formed fascist party). His method of engaging constituents was as a cult of personality. From the BBC, “His attitudes were highly theatrical, his opinions were contradictory, his facts were often wrong, and his attacks were frequently malicious and misdirected; but his words were so dramatic, his metaphors so apt and striking, his vigorous, repetitive gestures so extraordinarily effective, that he rarely failed to impose his mood“.

Mussolini organized the “March on Rome” Insurrection in 1922, the success of which marked the beginning of the official rule over Italy by fascists. Here is what Teach Democracy has to say about his tactics to maintain power:

“Mussolini called [for] new elections for the Italian parliament in 1924. Intimidation and fraud marred the election. Mussolini’s Fascist Party together with a smaller allied party won 66 percent of the vote.After the election, Mussolini closed opposition newspapers and banned public protest meetings. He declared all political parties illegal except for his own Fascist Party. He outlawed labor unions and strikes. He also established a political police force, the Organization for Vigilance and Repression of Antifascism. A Fascist Grand Council rubber-stamped Mussolini’s decrees and made parliament irrelevant.

By 1925, Mussolini had adopted the title, Il Duce (the Leader). He delivered emotional public speeches, swaying back and forth, puffing his chest, and holding his hands on his hips. The crowds chanted back fascist slogans such as “Il Duce is always right!” and “Believe, obey, fight!”

During his tenure, Mussolini terrorized the socialists and other political opponents. Violence was a key part of his regime, with murders of opposition leaders and outspoken constituents becoming the norm. He also made war a primary vehicle of his regime – invading countless countries just because “the strong should dominate the weak”.

He also, notably, hitched Italy’s wagon to his BFF and fellow fascist dictator – Adolph Hilter.

Hitler’s Take on Fascism

Hitler was an odd duck, to put it mildly. He started in the arts, attempting to make a living writing poetry and selling paintings. Like Mussolini, he fought in WWI and returned traumatized by trench warfare and disillusioned with the restrictions the Treaty of Versailles put on post-war Germany. Inflation ran rampant, and the German people rightfully felt repressed and disillusioned with the state as a whole. In 1919, Hitler attended a meeting of the German Worker’s Party. This was a small political movement that aimed to pull Germans away from Marxism and more toward right-wing ideals. By 1920 Hitler played a prominent part in this movement, which laid out it’s 25-point program the same year. This program was based on Nationalism and was HIGHLY racist. Key points of this program were returning control of the county to the “Volk”, or traditionally Germanic people. It aimed to deny citizenship to anyone not in the “Volk” camp, and especially targeted Jews.

According to the Holocaust Encyclopedia, “The Nazi Party grew steadily under Hitler’s leadership. It attracted support from influential people in the military, big business, and society. The Party also absorbed other radical right-wing groups. In 1921, the Nazis established a paramilitary force called the Sturmabteilung (SA, known in English as “Stormtroopers”). Yes, if you’re wondering if that’s where the other Stormtroopers got their name, it is.

Hitler’s first attempt to seize power was the The Beer Hall Putsch, an Insurrection that failed to meet it’s end goal and landed Hitler in prison for 5 years and got the Nazi Party banned in Germany.

Hitler re-established the party and attempted to win a legitimate seats in the Government in the 1928 elections. The party ultimately failed, receiving 2% of the votes. By 1930, they managed to capture 18% of the vote and 107 seats. In 1932, they became the largest Reichstag party and captured 37% of the vote and 230 seats. Hitler threw a hissy fit about not being appointed chancellor, which led to another election in which the Nazi support lost 2,000,000 of the votes captured in the first 1932 election and dropped to owning 196 seats.

On January 30th, 1933, Hindenburg appointed Hitler as the Chancellor. He very quickly took action, persuading Hindenburg to dissolve the Reichstag and announce new elections. He seized power in others ways by threatening, arresting, attacking and killing socialist and communist party members, as well as suppressing the media’s coverage of the opposite side. This, of course, created what a dictator really needs to maintain power: a one-pearty state. By July 1933, all other political parties were abolished. That’s ONLY 7 MONTHS from him being appointed Chancellor!

Hitler continued to persecute Jews and call for the Germanic people to return to their former glory and ownership of the state – pushing the idea of the Aryan race. This is a whole esoteric can of worms in itself, if you choose to open it.

He didn’t start with the genocide – he worked up to it. Starting with removing power from Jews by restricting what professions they could hold, working his way up to all out extermination of the race. Jews were not the only targets, though. LGBTQ, Mentally Handicapped people, and Slavic people were all targeted as well just to name a few.

As far as rhetoric and tactics, Hitler very much echoed Mussolini. He presented himself as an infallible leader, created a method to control elections, incited fear and distrust in the opposing political parties, and ultimately created a single-party state. There’s TONS more history about the Nazi Party, but for the sake of the next portion of this post I have covered the key characteristics of Hitler’s fascist rise to power.

Comparing Trump to Hitler and Mussolini’s Tactics

I’m going to start by aligning fascism to the accepted political scale we see in the U.S. There is conjecture and differing opinions on whether fascism falls on the right or the left, but the generally accepted definition places it in the far right. It’s not at all surprising to see a huge amount of overlap between socialism and fascism – Mussolini invented the concept and himself grew up steeped in socialism.

Next, let’s break down the key characteristics of classic fascism and identify if and where Trump’s administration has shown symptoms of a festering fascist infection. It’s important to note that there have been few successful fascist movements, and the ones there have been have had their own unique points. Mussolini’s Italy was different from Hitler’s Germany, but at their core they were both fascist. If the toppings on the soup are different but the broth is fascism, it’s still fascist soup.

Here are 14 characteristics of fascism, as written by Dr. Lawrence Britt, a Political scientist:

1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism
   • Definition: Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.
   • Evidence: Make America Great Again (MAGA) was Trump’s campaign slogan, which is now a term used by his supporters and his detractors to refer to his acolytes as a whole. Mussolini had black shirts, Hitler had swastikas, and Trump has red hats. The term MAGA in itself is fundamentally nativist/nationalist. Britannica has this to say: “The MAGA movement, often referred to simply as MAGA, or Make America Great Again, was founded on the belief that the United States was once a “great” country but has lost this status owing to foreign influence, both within its borders (via immigration and multiculturalism) and without (via globalization, or the increased integration of multiple national economies)”. Hitler wanted to return Germany to the “Volk” – Trump wants to give America back to straight, white people who feel put out by all of the different cultures and diversity in the country. The privilege they were promised is no longer a given; they have to compete and don’t like it.
   • Verdict: That’ll be our first check.
2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights
   • Definition: Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of “need.” The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.
   • Evidence: ICE Detentions have nearly doubled since December 2025, going from 42,128 to 70,766 as of January 25, 2026. The Marshall Project found that Trump, “has referred to unauthorized immigrants as criminals at least 575 times, as snakes that bite at least 35 times, as coming from prisons, jails and mental institutions at least 560 times and as causing crime in sanctuary cities at least 185 times. He has described the construction of a wall on America’s southern border as essential to public safety at least 675 times, and has argued at least 50 times that mass deportations are acceptable because President Dwight Eisenhower did it”. He’s continuously insinuated that undocumented individuals are a scourge and promised to remove the “worst of the worst” from the streets. To the contrary, 74.2% of current detainees have no criminal convictions. These detainees are reportedly living in sub-human conditions, without access to medicine, adequate food supply, or protections from communicable disease outbreak. Also, before you mention it, dear reader, I know Obama sucked at this too.
   • Verdict: While the detainees are technically undocumented immigrants, many of them were following the legitimate path the citizenship when they were abruplty removed. They are being treated as subhuman for the “good of the country”. I am calling this box checked.
3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause
   • Definition: The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial , ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.
   • Evidence: See the first point’s evidence of using undocumented immigrants as a scapegoat for increased criminal activity in the states. On top of that, Trump routinely disparages the left wing as a whole, which has resulted in democrats and liberals being routinely disparaged as a whole. Go find a social media post about literally any Liberal news and check out the comments. You’re going to see things like “Libturds”, “DemonRats”, and people saying “All democrats need to die” and so on. Check out this link and do a global search for “Democrat”. You’ll find insults about the entire party 114 times, and this is just what he’s posted on Twitter.
   • Verdict: This box is utterly, thoroughly and terrifyingly checked. Trump has succeeded in dividing the nation into two distinct sides, and created the public belief that Democrats, as a whole – every single one of them, are the enemies of the state. Step one in creating a single-party state.
4. Supremacy of the Military
   • Definition: Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.
   • Evidence: In Trump’s first term, his military spending aligned well with other recent administration’s. Even in 2025 and 2026, things were following along nicely with the status quo. Enter, the 2027 budget. Trump is asking for $1.5T, which increases military spending by more than 50%. Combined with military strikes in Venezuela, Somalia and Nigeria, threats against NATO Member Greenland and countless other escalations, it’s clear that the “no new wars” promise isn’t going the way Trump said it would. In addition to that, the request for massive increases in ICE and BCP funding appears from the outside to be a buildup of Trump’s own Paramilitary operation, like Mussolini’s Black Shirts and Hitler’s Stormtroopers. Unfortunately, unlike Star Wars’ Stormtroopers, ICE has no problem hitting their target. RIP Pretti and Good.
   • Verdict: That’s a check in my book.
5. Rampant Sexism
   • Definition: The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Opposition to abortion is high, as is homophobia and anti-gay legislation and national policy.
   • Evidence: Project 2025, which has been adhered to almost to the letter, calls for abortion being banned, classroom censorship of discussions regarding race, gender, and systematic oppression, and rolling back Trans Rights. These aren’t just in the policy that Trump claims to not be tied to, it’s present in his executive orders already. The links to each topic take you directly to his executive orders enacting the plan.
   • Verdict: Check, 1, 2, 3, Check.
6. Controlled Mass Media
   • Definition: Sometimes [the] media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.
   • Evidence: From a PBS article, “Trump has filed lawsuits against outlets whose coverage he dislikes, threatened to revoke TV broadcast licenses and sought to bend news organizations and social media companies to his will“. He also called for the arrest of Don Lemon for his journalist work during an activist campaign at a St. Paul church in early 2026, and loves to use the term “fake news” to dismiss any news coverage of him and his administration he dislikes.
   • Verdict: “Fake news” is a real check in this box.
7. Obsession with National Security
   • Definition: Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.
   • Evidence: See the first point on how Trump presents illegal aliens as demons and a massive national security threat. ‘Nuff said.
   • Verdict: That’s gonna be another chhhhhheck.
8. Religion and Government are Intertwined
   • Definition: Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government’s policies or actions.
   • Evidence: Trump told Gene Bailey of Flashpoint, “Nobody has done more for Christianity, or for evangelicals, or for religion itself, than I have“. According to the book “God and Country”, Trump specifically targeted the Evangelical vote as it makes up 50% of the Republican vote in this country. In September 2025, he released this Press Release touting how much he’s intertwined faith with his office.
   • Verdict: This is starting to feel repetitive and I’m only halfway through. Check.
9. Corporate Power is Protected
   • Definition: The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.
   • Evidence: Trump. Trump is the evidence. Here’s a report that shows 165 times when Trump stopped actions against corporations accused of misconduct and other crimes. Trump is a capitalist a his core, we don’t even need to elaborate much on this one.
   • Verdict: Ch-ch-ch-check!
10. Labor Power is Suppressed
    • Definition: Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed .
    • Evidence: Here is a pretty comprehensive list of Trump attacking unions. It’s not just a single event – it’s a well-documented pattern of anti-labor policies.
    • Verdict: Unfortunately, another check.
11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts
    • Definition: Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts is openly attacked, and governments often refuse to fund the arts.
    • Evidence: Trump hated the Grammy’s. Trump hated Bad Bunny’s halftime show. Trump hates Jimmy Kimmel, Alec Baldwin, Meryl Streep..the list goes on. Also, Trump dismantled the Department of Education, showing how much he values academics. He once said, “I love the poorly educated” after the Nevada caucus in 2016.
    • Verdict: Yikes. Check.
12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment
    • Definition: Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.
    • Evidence: Finally, it’s Vance’s turn to get roasted! After the Alex Pretti shooting done by ICE, JD Vance went on record (and has since backtracked from saying) that ICE has absolute immunity. Kash Patel’s FBI took over the Good shooting investigation all while vilifying the victims and making it clear that they’re already in the camp of the murderers, who are unlikely to face any consequences. ICE is consistently vilating Consitutional rights – the 1st, 2nd, and the 4th mainly. They have faced no appreciable consequences and are protected by Noem when they clearly overstep.
    • Verdict: Sigh. Killing of Alex Pretti scrambles Second Amendment politics for Trump | PBS News.
13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption
    • Definition: Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.
    • Evidence: Just like Trump protecting corporate power, him practicing cronyism hardly needs any explanation. In an article by the Brennan Center for Justice, they state, “Trump’s net worth has grown by $3 billion since he took office. His family businesses are raking in millions in the crypto industry, luxury real estate, and investment deals in the Middle East. The Trump Organization is reported to be in talks with Saudi Arabia on a deal that could bring the Trump brand to a government-owned luxury real estate development, flying in the face of the Constitution’s Foreign Emoluments Clause. Meanwhile, Trump hosted Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House today“.
    • Verdict: Like giving his own kids and kids-in-law seats at the table during his first term, he’s showing the he’s just as willing to let his corporate buddies buy in in this term. Check, mate.
14. Fraudulent Elections
    • Definition: Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.
    • Evidence: Trump literally incited an election over what he considered election fraud, which was really just him being pissed off that he lost. Just like Mussolini and Hitler, Trump had his own Insurrection and went on to pardon all of those who received charges as soon as he got back into office. This time around, he’s attacking the legitimacy of elections by claiming that elections are swayed by non-citizen voting, a fact that has been thoroughly and repeatedly debunked. The SAVE act passed the house on February 11th, and if it passes the Senate it will enact stringent citizenship proof requirements for voter registration. The practice of injecting doubt into the legitimacy of our elections is the first step to manipulating them.
    • Verdict: My hands are literally cramping from all this typing. This is yet another check.

The Overall Verdict

So, Trump certainly has a SHIT TON of evidence against him. On his face, his administration looks more like a regime hell-bent on turning us into a one-party country, seizing power, and using tradition methods of silencing opposition in the same way previous fascist dictators have. There are those that argue he’s more authoritarian, more hyper-capitalist, etc. I don’t think the label is what matters.

The bottom line is the rhetoric and escalation we are seeing is deeply concerning. The analogy of the frog in water comes to mind. If you put a frog in boiling water, it will jump right out. If you put it in cool water and slowly heat it up, the frog allows itself to be boiled.

I don’t want to be that frog.

Thanks for reading!