Fascism comes to Youngstown, Ohio
There was a rally in Youngstown, Ohio, on Saturday, September 17, 2022, that could not fill the 7,000-person arena.
The people there came to hear their leader, Donald Trump, offer his tribute to JD Vance. Vance, Republican Senate candidate for Ohio, is the person who set up a fake opioid charity, and believes that beaten women should stay married to strengthen family values. They saluted him.
Trump rambled for 104 minutes without interruption. The speech was, per usual, disorganized, rambling and incoherent at a structural level, but not so nonsensical that it cannot be understood.
At one level, it is a paean to victimization. It is a celebration of shared ‘loserdom’ and self-declared victimization. The people assembled have found a community within the small boundaries of a wretched cause, grown large enough to trigger a national catastrophe.
At another level, the rally is a deepening dive that set another new low. We are witnessing an extremist hive that has long been in focus, but is just now starting to be seen by people who should have seen it coming seven years ago. No matter. Seeing it now is what matters.
The rally presented a darkening message of confrontation, hate, world war, civil war and political violence. Trump painted a delusional dystopia and apocalyptic hour of confrontation that is at hand because he was rejected and defeated by the American people.
The rally ended with a series of statements scored to the QAnon theme song. The crowd responded. Let’s watch:
What should this be called? What is this? Is it real? Is it organized? Is it well-funded? Is it dangerous? Is it dangerous to America’s peace, prosperity and domestic tranquility?