MAGA

The Army Warned Troops in 1945 of the Danger of Fascism. That Warning Rings True Today

by Alan J. Singer

As the military prepared for the occupation of conquered Axis nations, it realized that without awareness of the content and goals of fascism, it could emerge at home as "Americanism." 

MAGA School Board Faces Backlash in Colorado

When a right-wing slate of school board candidates took office in Woodland Park, Colorado, they hoped to "flood the zone" with rapid changes to curriculum, teacher policy, charter schools, and more. The public has become less enthusiastic, even many conservatives. 

The Common Evangelical Roots of Insurrection in America and Brazil

by Raimundo Barreto and João B. Chaves

A century of international evangelical network-building and theological development have brought militant Christian nationalism to the forefront of right-wing politics in both nations. 

New Anthology Mistakes the Roots of the Problem as "Misinformation" Rather than Power

by Paul M. Renfro and Matthew E. Stanley

The new "Myth America" offers insight into some recurrent myths about history from some excellent scholars, but it hews too closely to the idea that historical lies are a Trumpian phenomenon, rather than a broader aspect of the pursuit and consolidation of power for MAGA and New Democrats alike. 

Why the Fringe is in Charge of the GOP

by Richard H. Pildes

The ability of a couple dozen hardliners to derail the Speaker election reflects deep transformations in the power of congressional leaders to wield power through commitee assignments and campaign funds. Will this make governing impossible? 

Republicans (Finally) Rally Around McCarthy as Speaker

Kevin McCarthy has secured the speakership through apparent deals allowing a group of right-wing hardliners to have greater influence over legislation and more investigative power. Historians followed the voting and discuss what comes next. 

The Biggest Threat to America's Stability is the Class Divide

by Kim Phillips-Fein

We mistakenly bemoan "polarization" instead of reckoning with the economic power of radical right-wing elites, who have the resources to fund growing organizations, and the growing number of people disaffected from the social order who are susceptible to their messages. 

Trump is Back In, Officially

by Tom Nichols

"Donald Trump wants to return to the White House. His candidacy should be the final test of whether the United States has truly overcome the lure of authoritarianism."

MAGA is Making the Civil Servant an Endangered Species

by Donald Moynihan

Conservative rhetoric has long portrayed government as ineffective and inefficient. But potraying civil servants as enemies and traitors is new and dangerous. 

Eying Return to Power, Conservatism Learns to Love the Administrative State

by Jim Sleeper

Some conservatives are turning away from the idea of a government small enough to drown in a bathtub to the idea of one large enough to enforce economic, cultural and sexual orthodoxy in line with their vision of the common good. Will the midterms be their coming out party? 

What Does It Mean to Be Baptized for Trump?

by John Fea

100 Trump supporters were baptized last week in Pennsylvania, at a rally featuring a who's who of MAGA world. A Christian historian wonders: what do we make of a spiritual commitment to Trumpism, and of the political appropriation of the conversion experience? 

Arena Rockin' The Vote?

by George Case

Dismissed, derided, or even deplored by critics, and out of step with the trends, arena rock acts still pack them in in much of America. Is it the sonic key to understanding Trumpism? 

It's Also Frightening When Trump Tells the Truth

by Tom Nichols

Showing his belief that the democratic process is only legitimate when he wins, Trump demonstrates the nihilism at the heart of MAGA, which Joe Biden correctly called out last week in his speech. 

Historically Speaking, Biden's "Semi-Fascist" Description of MAGA is Correct

by Federico Finchelstein

The global authoritarian movement, of which MAGA is a part, is becoming increasingly intolerant of democracy and committed to fighting imagined threats to the nation. It's an ominous direction that tracks with the past rise of fascist regimes. 

Nicole Hemmer: Trump Didn't Kill off Reaganism—Reagan's Contemporaries Did

Why, as Republicans touted the legacy of Ronald Reagan, have they moved further from his sunny rhetoric and international engagement toward a harder-edged nationalism? 

Ailing Empires: The Rhetoric of Decline in Britain and the US

by Jed Esty

If the US is following behind Great Britain in experiencing the strains of a collapsing empire, can Americans, their leaders, and their thinkers learn any lessons from the comparison and make a post-imperial society that is more humane and less nasty? 

Political Scientist Skocpol: "Stop the Steal" is Metaphor for White Resentment

"They believe that urban people, metropolitan people—disproportionately young and minorities, to be sure, but frankly liberal whites—are an illegitimate brew that’s changing America."

The Fatally Selective Memory of "Make America Great Again"

by Leonard Steinhorn

"The 1950s were great only for some Americans. Restoring that America — as many Republicans are attempting to do in places where they wield political power — would hurt almost everyone else."

For Trump and Trumpists, the Law is Always White

by Melissa Gira Grant

In singling out the Black elected officials who thwarted his bid to steal the election and are investigating his political and business affairs, Trump evoked the Reconstruction-era rhetoric of white southerns under attack, which, as Eric Foner wrote, justified a massive wave of racist political violence. 

The My Pillow Guy Could Really Destroy Democracy

by Anne Applebaum

"Wacky though it seems for a businessman to invest so much in a conspiracy theory, there are important historical precedents."