Instigator in Chief
Trump must be held Accountable for his Violent Rhetoric
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From telling supporters in 2016 to "knock the crap out of" protestors and promising to pay legal fees ', to suggesting in November 2023 that as ABC points out he would "root out the Communists, Marxists, fascists and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country" Trump’s violent rhetoric shows that it has led directly to creating a climate of political violence culminating in the two heinous assasinations last week in Minnesota.
When he pardoned the January 6th protestors, a signal was broadcast to his followers would-be extremists on either side of the political debate. As The Washington Post commented : "They sent a very strong message that violence, as long as you're a Trump supporter, will be permitted and may be rewarded." Trump has, in other words created what the scholars call a “ permission structure for political violence.”
The statistical evidence supports these concerns. Nearly a quarter of Americans (23 percent) believe that "true American patriots may have to resort to violence in order to save our country," according to a 2023 poll conducted by the Public Religion Research Institute with the Brookings Institution AFRO Editorial: Our lives are on the line—again: What political violence means for Black America. More tellingly, one-third of Republicans now support violence as a means of saving the country, compared with 22 percent of independents and 13 percent of Democrats AFRO Editorial: Our lives are on the line—again: What political violence means for Black America.
The pattern extends beyond isolated incidents. The Anti-Defamation League found that from 2022 through 2024, all of the 61 political killings in the United States were committed by right-wing extremists Trump, GOP defiant amid allegations that incendiary rhetoric contributed to climate of violence - The Washington Post. This creates what experts describe as an ecosystem where violent rhetoric from leaders creates permission structures that isolated actors then exploit.
Trump's response to the Minnesota tragedy shows he has no understanding of his own moral responsibilty to keep his more extreme and violent loving supporters in line. While he initially condemned the violence, he refused (as protocol would dictate) to call Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz—saying that it would be a "waste of time" calling Walz "so whacked out" and asking "Why would I call him?"
According to UCLA analysis—”Trump's violent vocabulary in speeches has increased over time, and is now at a higher level than any other U.S. major party presidential candidate analyzed in a study that compares his speeches to past and present politicians and foreign dictators.
“No president has ever spoken like that before,” President Joe Biden said of former President Donald Trump during their June 27, 2024, debate. He was referring to Trump’s suggestion of seeking political retribution, a part of the projected image that won Trump the Republican nomination and presidency in 2016 – one that is on display again in the current presidential election campaign.
“We know from past research that inflammatory rhetoric can prompt a few unstable individuals to engage in political violence,” Treisman one of the study’s authors said. “Given that, it’s important to carefully monitor the speech of radical populists like Trump.”
The study also found that Trump has been effective in creating his own brand of negative populism through his rhetoric. While traditional right-wing populism frequently utilizes “us” against “them” language, it balances the opposition to elites with a more inclusive rhetoric about “the people.” Trump, by contrast, refers to “the people” less often than any other recent major party presidential candidate. While using “us” at a roughly average rate, he stands out for his frequent references to “them,” which he has used to target out-groups like immigrants and the unpopular elites, such as “the corrupt globalist establishment.”
Trump has avoided accountability in so many areas—convictions that have not led to sentencing, impeachments that have not led to disqualification from holding office, lies and corruption have all gone unpunished. He has never been told what the red line is and has never been aware of the damage he has caused to the body politic and now he is the not just the leader of America’s fascist party but increasingly its criminal wing. He has a lot to answer for and the question is will he ever be brought to justice. The more pressing question now is whether the news media will connect together Trump’s numerous statements that encourage violence and help the American public to understand his role in abetting the rise in political violence that has occured under his watch and with his encourgement.