Hyper_Upgrade said:
Yes, there is a clear difference. Obviously, part of politics is to slander your opponent since in many cases in today's politics people vote against a party, not for one. But let's go deep into what these attacks mean. Being painted as a socialist is considered a taboo to republicans, but why? Because for republicans it is messaging a sign of naivety or a lack of understanding of reality. Another way to look at it is they were calling Obama stupid. To paraphrase a very in-depth and complicated argument, 'He ignores historical precedence or knowledge of life and economics.' As for the Muslim attempt, I do not condone this attack especially since it was slander, and I believe that was a poor attack that did not work preciously for that reason. The messaging that was likely behind it was to question his legitimacy as an American who could govern the country he ran. Especially since some of his policies were perceived by republicans to demonize or trivialize American heritage. As always, the key word is "perceive." ... So, how is the attacks on Trump different ? (Which is a fair question). Trump is considered stupid which is nothing new in the political realm. What is different is that these recent attacks are not merely about his intelligence or his moral character. Rather, the messaging is that Trump and his supporters are trying to emulate the worst dictators of human history. Only a fascist would separate kids. Only a Nazi would try to block people from coming to this country on a basis of race. Trump is racist, sexist, and every other -ist and -ic out there. It's not even the idea that he is evil, it is that he is the definition of evil. Therefore, we as citizens have a moral obligation to stop him at any cost because he is the greatest threat of our time. This is not a fringe statement. Members of the press, Late night shows, cable (political) news, members of the house and senate, celebrities, all have major influence of traditional media. Now, I do remember times where Obama was compared to Hitler, and I also remember the reaction. No one took them seriously. It was some idiot on the fringe who grossly simplified the President. Just as those attacks should be considered. Politics is an ugly place and I do not expect civility in that realm. However, to use the dictators of the 20th century as part of analogy better be damn well thought out, because as Jordan Peterson would say, it is sacrilegious to use the most tragic events in Human history for expedient gain. The numbers also speak for coverage of Trump compared to past presidents. ... |
No, Obama was painted as a socialist because they thought this was the buzz word at the time Americans would get behind. Obama was painted as a muslim because those same political opponents wanted to paint him as favoring muslim values which would of course put off the Christian base. As with anything political, people will use whatever they feel is a message that will get enough voters to side with them.
Yes, Trump is being considered in the same light as current and pass dictators but then again, he helped make that message. Just like Obama father was Kenyan, it gave his political opponents an avenue to paint him as muslim, Trump praising every dictator from Kim to Putin, gave his political opponents a means to paint him in the same light. Obama was painted just as evil as Trump from the right leaning sites, Trust me I read them all. Probably the only reason you believe you see more sites against Trump is because he basically rub a lot of people the wrong way. Unlike other presidents, he loves to open his mouth about every topic that comes to his mind. Just like social media, when you talk to much without thinking should I be saying this as president, you will get a lot of flak. The difference with Trump compared to other presidents is that other presidents treated their position first and then their social status second. Trump still thinks he is that celebrity TV star first and President second. As long as Trump continue to give fuel to his political opponents to tie his actions to past and present dictators, they will continue to try to push that narative.
