Letters

Jones, a Democratic House is Critical in Ensuring U.S. Avoids Fascism

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Earlier in the year, Mondaire Jones, the Democratic candidate for New York’s 17th Congressional District, said that “our project is to defeat fascism this year.”

Donald Trump’s campaign for president has borne out the importance of that objective as Trump has increasingly used dehumanizing language reminiscent of that used by the European fascists last century saying that immigrants are “poisoning the blood of our country” and many have “bad genes” and likening political opponents to “vermin” and claiming they are “enemies from within.” And yet numerous Republicans have endorsed him.

The Republicans who have endorsed Trump do not seem to have learned the lessons on the dangers of fascism. These lessons include World War II and the Holocaust. In Germany, fascism was driven by hate of the Jews. Here in the U.S., fascist rhetoric has focused primarily on stirring up hate of immigrants who came across the Mexican border.

Congress has failed to stop Trump twice by not convicting him in impeachment trials, the Supreme Court has failed to stop Trump by not allowing states to use the insurrection clause of the 14th Amendment, and the only thing still standing in the way of a fascist America under Trump, an admirer of dictators, is the voters, who came through in 2020, but now must do it yet again.

While voters in the 17th Congressional District will almost certainly not play a central role in determining who wins the presidential election, they can vote for Mondaire Jones and elect a candidate to the House of Representatives who strongly opposes fascism. And if Trump loses and tries again to steal the election, which party controls the House on Jan. 6 may play a critical role in determining whether the next president is chosen by the American voters or power-hungry politicians who put party over country, which makes sending Mondaire Jones to Washington that much more important.

Robert Liebman

Mount Kisco

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