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Posted by mickle00 1/25/2026

Yes, It's Fascism(www.theatlantic.com)
680 points | 401 commentspage 2
jmclnx 1/25/2026|
No doubt with that, ICE seems to be able to kill when and whomever they want. ICE looks close to the brown shirts in Germany in the 30s.
noitpmeder 1/25/2026||
They're basically jackboots, I have to imagine almost entirely composed of the republican far right. Just imagine the echo chamber that exists within their ranks.

They literally just murdered someone in cold blood. Textbook execution without trial. And have some of the most powerful people in the world saying how brave they are and how great of a job they did executing their duty.

Their entire recruiting process has the effect of self selecting for the exact kind of person who is significantly more likely to shoot an unarmed nonviolent protestor.

If I recall correctly they even have notably higher salary and signing bonuses compared to similar agencies, which could be (decent pessimistically) interpreted as a way to hoover up more recruits with questionable moral bases. "Oh I really don't think ICE is doing the right thing, but oh boy sign me up for that cash baby".

mickle00 1/25/2026||
ICE being the highest funded U.S. law enforcement agency is so sad, and so fucked

https://www.kuow.org/stories/how-ice-grew-to-be-the-highest-...

cookszn 1/25/2026||
[dead]
ezst 1/25/2026||
> So the United States, once the world’s exemplary liberal democracy, is now a hybrid state combining a fascist leader and a liberal Constitution; but no, it has not fallen to fascism. And it will not.

That's some optimism right there.

blibble 1/25/2026||
> world’s exemplary liberal democracy

this has never been the case either, unless you're listening to USian television/movies

acqq 1/25/2026||
European, not accidentally, also mostly deliver the same, misleading, narrative.
zombot 1/26/2026||
And once Trump feels secure enough, he will also behead Congress, or at least many of its members. Maybe he wants to keep it as a convenient puppet show. Remember that this is just 1 year into his 2nd term. There is still much time for making things worse.
p4bl0 1/25/2026||
An additional short read which is really worth it: Il fascismo eterno by Umberto Eco, in which the author describes 14 properties of fascists regimes.

It's been translated in English as Ur-fascism and is available online for free at the anarchist library: https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/umberto-eco-ur-fasci....

solaire_oa 1/26/2026|
To be honest, I found this essay a bit meandering and I lost interest in reading the whole thing (coming off the heels of re-reading Civil Disobedience, which by comparison is immediately forthright and to the point).

Skipping ahead to the 14 properties, however, points 5, 7, 11, and 12 are probably the most evident in the present moment.

frm88 1/26/2026||
Bret Deveraux, the American historian, did an analysis in 2024 of Eco's essay with focus on Trump and found all 14 were already a check: https://acoup.blog/2024/10/25/new-acquisitions-1933-and-the-...
solaire_oa 1/26/2026||
Oh, having a historian's translation of the essay is legitimately helpful for understanding how the the points relate in the current climate, thank you. And I love acoup.blog, separately (tangentially related, I was legitimately crestfallen when he linked the formations of the orc army to the enduring, permeating, trans-generational success of Nazi propaganda https://acoup.blog/2019/05/24/collections-the-siege-of-gondo...)
scotty79 1/27/2026||
I think flagging thresholds might need to raised. It's way too easy to supress anything controversial nowadays.
vga42 2 days ago||
Non-paywalled article here: https://archive.is/Maalh
wslh 1/25/2026||
I don’t understand how there aren’t demonstrations happening almost everywhere in the US by now.
mocheeze 1/25/2026||
There are though. Regularly.
gizmov21 1/25/2026|||
Seriously lol. MN had HUGE protests the last few days, as did LA when the DHS was there (and why they probably went to somewhere less hostile like MN and soon Maine).
wslh 1/26/2026|||
Could you point please to several of them? I am aware of the Minnesota ones but there are 50 states in the US.
cookszn 1/25/2026|||
Yea let me go protest the government on behalf of foreigners illegally crossing the border!
bean469 1/26/2026|||
Because most people don't care enough to protest
le-mark 1/25/2026|||
Itis horrendous by any measure. But Fox and conservative media amplify and support it all. Trump voters by and large love the deportations; I know this from my in laws over the holidays. If a few eggs get broken they really don’t care. Notice red states have none of this because Trump focuses ICE on blue states.

Protests are what Trump wants. He would like nothing better than marshal law and cancelling the mid terms. He has said so many times.

EmanueleAina 1/25/2026|||
You are not wrong. But history also somewhat shows that appeasement is even worse.
wslh 1/25/2026|||
I also wonder how politically weak the US could be if its rivals and adversaries see this level of internal violence as an opportunity to step up pressure or exploit divisions at home.
RealityVoid 1/25/2026|||
You think they don't already do this? Social media is astroturfed to hell, even HN is being manipulated. Look how political submissions get flagged. I honestly think the current internet is irredeemable for real conversations about this.
fhdkweig 1/25/2026|||
I'm of the opinion that the Russians, through paid online trolling, are responsible for starting this 10 years ago. They helped stoke the fears that got Trump elected the first time.
krapp 1/26/2026|||
The fears that got Trump elected the first time have been a part of American culture since the civil war, if not the founding of the nation itself. You can find echoes of him all the way back to the John Birch Society. This is an entirely American problem.
thunky 1/26/2026|||
Don't forget to give CNN the credit it deserves.
quercus 1/25/2026||
Because most people are happy to see immigration laws enforced.
mingus88 1/25/2026|||
Then why isn’t ICE in the states with the most immigrants?
zahlman 1/26/2026|||
They are. (see e.g. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/are-cities-ice-raids-ar...) And they have been, the whole time.

ICE has arrested and deported far more people from Texas than Minnesota (e.g. https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/texas-immigration-crac... https://www.newsweek.com/map-shows-states-ice-arrest-immigra... https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/politics/im... many other sources can easily be found).

You don't hear about it so much (unless you go looking) because Texas isn't a sanctuary state. Texas law enforcement supports and assists ICE, and Texas government officials don't encourage protests (and would tell protesters, if asked, not to obstruct and not to resist arrest). So there is no major conflict, minimal protest, and essentially no news coverage.

Minnesota government officials, on the other hand, seem to be interpreting 10A well beyond any precedent I ever heard of, and don't seem particularly interested in the consequences of the Supremacy Clause. In fact they have repeatedly falsely claimed that ICE are "not real law enforcement".

mingus88 1/27/2026||
Oh, good to know. Executing law abiding citizens in cold blood is fair game then.
cookszn 1/25/2026||||
Immigrants? or illegal immigrants? There’s a huge distinction between an immigrant coming with a visa/green card with a set job and education (net positive to the country)
mickle00 1/25/2026|||
logic would indicate that its either (or both) (1) its not about immigration (it's about power and control thru fear) or (2) they're idiots
throw0101c 1/25/2026|||
> logic would indicate that its either (or both) (1) its not about immigration (it's about power and control thru fear) or (2) they're idiots

Let's not forgot and/or (3) going after Minnesota voter roles (per this letter from Pam Bondi):

* https://archive.is/https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/...

* https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bondi-minnesota-voter-rolls-wel...

mickle00 1/25/2026||
I see that as a subset of 1 (power & control thru fear), but yeah, clearly, and obviously not the 'stated' reasons
mingus88 1/25/2026|||
Agreed. If this were about enforcing immigration law, they would first focus on red states with huge immigrant populations, where they would have full cooperation from the local government and citizens who overwhelmingly voted for Trump. Those supporters who care about enforcing immigration laws would directly benefit.

This is obviously violence directed at Minnesota, who is led by a political opponent. It’s capital F Fascism and everyone on the right has grandfathers that are ashamed of them.

cogman10 1/25/2026|||
> everyone on the right has grandfathers that are ashamed of them.

There's plenty of German heritage in the US. There was a decent number of grandparents who thought the US was on the wrong side of WW2.

zahlman 1/26/2026||||
> If this were about enforcing immigration law, they would first focus on red states with huge immigrant populations

They did; see my other reply.

mingus88 1/27/2026||
How about business owners who are hiring the illegal immigrants? When aren’t they going after the supply?
zahlman 1/27/2026||
1. They do that too; see e.g. https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5411184-ice-crac... .

2. Are they really "the supply"? There are so many illegal immigrants in the US now (so many that they have to prioritize the ones who have committed violent crimes, hence the "worst of the worst" propaganda) that it seems entirely reasonable to imagine they could start their own illicit businesses and employ each other.

3. Even habitually hiring illegal aliens doesn't appear to be a felony (https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/8/1324a section (f)), so immigration officers such as ICE agents require a warrant to make an arrest for that specific case (unless they witness the crime per https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/8/1357 section (5)(a), and I'm not even sure what that means for the case of unlawfully employing someone).

4. Yes, of course realpolitik also plays a role. Clearly these businesses aren't part of some conspiracy to overrun the country with illegal immigrants, so it wouldn't make sense to get the owners on Trump's bad side. These businesses would hire citizens if they were willing to work for the same pay and under the same conditions, and generally it's been the Republicans opposing things like minimum wage increases.

quercus 1/25/2026|||
Who can resist a little schadenfreude.
mrtesthah 1/27/2026||
LOL that lesbian bitch who got shot had it coming. amirite?

We know what it is you really want.

scoofy 1/25/2026||||
You can be pro-immigration enforcement, while also anti whatever-the-fuck-this-is.

It's called being pro-rule of law.

You're not allowed to just shoot people in the back that are very obviously not a threat, even if their idiotic lack of proper training makes them feel like they're in danger. It's literally South Parkian "they're coming right for us!!!" -- BANG -- as justification for lethal force of an unarmed person in custody.

mickle00 1/25/2026|||
source?

The mainstream media is not covering the many daily protests I see in my area, and hear and see from friends and family elsewhere. However, I do think the majority of Americans do not have the luxury (or fear of losing their job, and thus their healthcare, etc) to just walk out on their jobs or responsibilities, and the social safety nets here are limited (and being further cut by this administration).

I do think a general strike is the last chance at a non-violent resistance, but the oligarchs and powerful can weather that storm much more easily than the average American.

quercus 1/25/2026||
They literally voted for it.
array_key_first 1/25/2026||
They voted for something else, they were conned by populist messaging.
fhdkweig 1/25/2026|||
I didn't bother to vote in 2016 because I wasn't paying attention. I was used to politics being about two nearly identical groups who both wanted what was best for America. By 2020 and 2024, everyone should have known who this guy was. He thrived on media attention. Even during the 4 years of Biden, every news article was about him. Everyone knew what he wanted to do, and they voted for what they wanted.
magicalhippo 1/25/2026||||
If you voted for Trump and is surprised by anything that's happened the past year, that's like trying to say you thought the 12 year old girl was actually over 18.
quercus 1/25/2026|||
Immigration was a pretty big topic during the election. People knew what they were voting for. I find it sad that you find it hard to believe people have civic pride they want to defend.
array_key_first 6 days ago||
Considering citizens have been executed by the state, I would say people did not know what they were voting for.

Unless, of course, you're insinuating they do actually want that. In which case, your outlook of Trump voters is significantly lower than mine. Call me generous.

Now, of course, a lot of people saw this coming and have been warning about growing authoritarianism from Trump and his administration. But his administration is also built almost entirely on lies, so I can't be too critical of people who are confused.

protastus 1/25/2026||
The Trump administration has gone so far down the path of fascism and crime that I'm convinced they don't simply want to be in power indefinitely -- they need it. Otherwise, the moment a law-abiding president gets elected, there will be criminal charges against all involved. And there's no statute of limitations for murder.

I believe this country will need massive investigations and criminal trials to heal. I am concerned with what happens in between, but this is reality as I see it.

queenkjuul 1/26/2026||
No chance in hell Democrats do a single thing to these people when they're out of power. If anything it'll be a Democrat justifying more ICE shootings so as "not to look weak on immigration"
hackingonempty 1/26/2026|||
> I believe this country will need massive investigations and criminal trials to heal. I am concerned with what happens in between, but this is reality as I see it.

Trump learned his lesson and pardoned every Jan 6 terrorist. If he leaves office, he is going to pardon every single person in his administration for anything they did from 2025-2029. There will be no investigations and no criminal trials. They all know this to be true.

Moomoomoo309 1/26/2026|||
Murder can easily be brought up as a state charge, which cannot be pardoned by the president. Only governors can pardon state charges.
bakies 1/26/2026|||
Biden did the pre-emptive pardon thing. Trump will take that precedent and run with it.
tstrimple 1/25/2026|||
Unfortunately liberals seem to care far more about "unity" than justice in any sense. They have been letting conservatives get away with damaging our country repeatedly throughout the decades and always welcome them back with open bipartisan arms. Maybe we could have nipped this in the bud if the confederate states were forced to de-radicalize like Germany was. Instead literal traitors to our country were right back to running for national office again and have been sowing dissent literally ever since. How many Democrats just voted for even more ICE funding for fucks sake?
mnicky 1/25/2026||
Didn't the same happen after Biden was elected? And see, it achieved nothing, regrettably...
protastus 1/25/2026||
No, it didn't. Order was not restored, criminals were encouraged, and here we are.
wrs 1/25/2026|||
There were investigations. There were indictments (including four of Trump himself). Here we are. What we learned is that the only constitutional remedy is impeachment (which was also tried twice). What has disabled all the checks and balances is the knife-edge Congressional majority, the takeover of the judiciary, and the purging of the civil service. Changing the President stops the active craziness but doesn't address the underlying problem.
mnicky 1/25/2026|||
I should have put it differently. I'm afraid that maximum what will be realistically done will be similar to the situation after the Biden got elected. And that didn't help.
JohnTHaller 1/26/2026||
Link for once flagged: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/01/america-fascism-tr...
judahmeek 1/26/2026|
You can also view flagged posts through https://news.ycombinator.com/active
touwer 1/25/2026||
The most scaring and amazing thing is not Trump himself, but all the people (suddenly) supporting him and being silent (including too many Democrats) in order to keep their position or for for opportunistic purposes. And destroying democracy along the way. Just like all the secret police agents in Iran or the henchmen of Hitler. CEO's of bigtech. Crypto-libertarians. Too many people are sucking up to wannabe dictators when the moment is there
WickyNilliams 1/25/2026||
Same pattern played out in Germany. The centrists were more concerned with leftists than Hitler. Big business thought they could cosy up to him and keep him under control. Opportunistic collaboration for self preservation or personal benefit.

Of course these all turned out to be grave miscalculations. I imagine that pattern will eventually play out this time too...

wrs 1/25/2026||
Is it possible their only miscalculation was not realizing how much of the world would fight back? Because if it hadn't, they would have continued enjoying the benefits.
WickyNilliams 1/25/2026||
No I don't think so. Broadly they hitched their cart to a genocidal madman. Their hubris convinced them they could maintain a steer on its direction.

The centrists ultimately lost when the Nazis banned other political parties. If they were not murdered first. And the Nazis took control of the German workforce, imposed harsh taxation on businesses, central planning, nationalization etc.

I'm sure the uneasy alliance worked well for a a little while though!

acqq 1/25/2026||
Only somebody who isn't aware of whose "Congress speech received multiple standing ovations, touted 'most by any world leader'" would be surprised by that bipartisan support you mention. That happened in 2024, before Trump began his second term, but shows how the system works.
ZeroGravitas 1/26/2026|
It's useful to rewind and see the tests people put in place before the thing happened.

Like this VOX article surveying experts on fascism in 2015 and then revisiting in 2020:

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/21521958/what-is-fas...

> But there is still no state management of the economy here (as there was to a degree in Nazi Germany and fascist Italy). Trump is content to aid business by reducing government protections of the environment and of workers … and his economic policy is mainly just to let businessmen do what they want.

Well, we can check that one off the list with 2024 hindsight.

>He’s never actually done a Putin and tried to make himself a permanent president, let alone suggest any coherent plan for overthrowing the constitutional system. And I don’t even think that’s in his mind

And another one bites the dust.

Note that all the scholars who get very technical on what they want to call Fascist all compare him to Marcos, Erdogan, Milosovic. That's still not a good review.

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