Almost before Donald Trump ascended the brass and glass escalator, the whispers started. At first, a faint cry of pain grew into a roaring thunder of disbelief.
Was this oligarch for real? Was it genuine or was it a nightmare: This bigoted, racist, xenophobe just descended from his office suite on the 5th floor to announce he was running for President?
Trump was for real, and the lies, idiotic remarks, and the circus kept growing. A media darling — have Trump on your show and see — Trump started collecting supporters the way a dog collects fleas.
It wasn't long before the inevitable parallels linking Adolf Hitler and Donald Trump were being spoken out loud. Even Eva Schloss, Anne Frank's stepsister, told
Michiko Kakutani, in the September 29, 2016, issue of The New York Times, asked, "What persuaded millions of ordinary Germans to embrace him (Hitler) and his doctrine of hatred?" It is a question many are asking about Donald Trump, now the Republican nominee.
Kakutani, writing a review of Volker Ullrich's new book, "Hitler — Ascent," found many comparisons between the 1930s Hitler and the 2016s Trump.
Hitler v. Trump
Reading almost any description of the 1930s dictator shows parallels to Trump. Only ugly third-graders and adults who have lost what little critical thinking skills they had, fail to see the eerie resemblance.
For instance:
Who was described by an eminent magazine editor as a "half-insane rascal," a "big mouth" and a "nowhere fool?"
When the man described above ran for office, he was also called the "most unlikely pretender to high state office."
Was it difficult to determine of whom the editor was talking?
Hitler fits the description, and it was the Fuhrer that the editor was talking about.
The editor wasn't alone in denigrating Hitler. Others joined in. Their observations could be concerning Trump.
Hitler was frequently portrayed as an egomaniac who "only loved himself" and a narcissist with a knack for self-dramatization. Ullrich says Hitler had a "fondness for superlatives" and his manic addresses increased inquiries about his capability for self-control.
Ullrich points out that Hitler was recognized for a "bottomless mendacity" that was amplified by slick propaganda which used, what was then, modern technology to disseminate his message.
One of Germany's past finance ministers wrote that Hitler "was so untruthful that he could no longer recognize the difference between a lie and the truth."
Editors of "Mein Kampf" called the book a "swamp of lies, distortions, innuendoes, half-truths and real facts." Appears similar to what readers report about Trump's "The Art of the Deal."
Hitler was known for his large, theatrical assemblies framed with circus props. Hitler framed his lectures to gratify the leaning of his "lower-middle class, nationalist, anti-Semitic listeners." Exchange Semitic for Muslim and we've just described Donald Trump — again.
Hitler, like Trump, pledged to lead German "to a new era of greatness." Hiter — like Trump — was hazy about his methods for bringing about his designs. Hitler also encouraged Germans to look back to a "golden age for the nation and painted the present day in hues that were darker."
Hitler said on more than one moment, "everywhere you look now, there is only decline and decay."
Hitler's ascension to command was not fixed according to Ullrich. There were various times where Hitler's campaign could have been derailed.
Hitler benefited from a series of crises that he exploited:
- Germany's economic woes,
- Unemployment,
- Erosion in the center of politics,
- A growing resentment of the elites.
Argentina is familiar with Nazis. Many settled in the South American country at the end of World War II.
At a cafe in Buenos Aires, I was recently asked by an Argentine:
"300 million Americans and Trump is the best you can do?"
Jerry Nelson is an American freelance writer, ghostwriter and content provider, now living the expat life in South America. Never without a cup of coffee or Marlboros, You can join the million-or-so who follow him on Twitter @ Journey_America and email him at jandrewnelson2@gmail.com.
"McChavezmo" is his latest book about the political instability in South America and who is behind it.