His most consistent belief is that authoritarian rulers know best.

Donald Trump has flitted erratically from one position to another on a variety of political beliefs, but he has hewed with remarkable consistency to one: Dictators are good. Trump has maintained this belief throughout his long public career, and he asserted it once again in a speech in New Hampshire Saturday.

In the address, Trump cited Hungarian strongman Viktor Orbán, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, and North Korean hereditary communist monarch Kim Jong-un as authorities on his own superiority. “Viktor Orbán, the highly respected prime minister of Hungary, said Trump is the man who can save the western world,” exclaimed Trump. Putin “says that Biden’s, and this is a quote, politically motivated persecution of his political rival is very good for Russia because it shows the rottenness of the American political system, which cannot pretend to teach others about democracy.” As for Kim, “He’s not so fond of this administration, but he’s fond of me.”

Trump is not merely making a Kissingerian argument that these foreign leaders maintained peaceful international relations with him as president. He is citing them specifically as experts on domestic American governance. They know how to run a society, Trump boasts, and they see in Trump a strong leader in the same mold.

  • iBaz@lemmy.world
    39·
    11 months ago

    The worst part of this… his cult loves it and will eagerly vote for him.

    • HikingVet@lemmy.ca
      27·
      11 months ago

      The amount of people I have recently heard stating that they think that a dictator would be a good idea, makes me worried about the general education level of the populace.

      I might be missing some info, but dictatorships aren’t good for anyone. And before you say thay its good for the dictator and their sycophants, they are constantly on guard for revolutions.

      • Nightwingdragon@lemmy.worldEnglish
        32·
        11 months ago

        The amount of people I have recently heard stating that they think that a dictator would be a good idea, makes me worried about the general education level of the populace.

        This is because these people believe that somehow, they will be on what they consider the “right” side of the oppression. Surely, the leopard won’t eat their face and all that…

      • WashedOver@lemmy.ca
        6·
        11 months ago

        The numbers out this week on the percentage of the US population that thinks the Holocaust is a myth or they just don’t know if it is real, is troubling and could be partially related to these people that need to touch the stove to see if the warnings about the stove being hot is for real. I imagine actual dictators aren’t something they think are a concern…

      • iBaz@lemmy.world
        6·
        11 months ago

        I don’t know, but at least now when someone asks about 1930’s Germany, we see why. 🤦🏻‍♂️

  • donuts@kbin.social
    33·
    11 months ago

    Hey wait a minute… I’m starting to think this Donald Trump guy might be an amoral fascist autocrat.

        • HWK_290@lemmy.worldEnglish
          3·
          11 months ago

          Perhaps it’s a new and dubious legal strategy?

          “I’m not Trump, why would I refer to myself in the third person? That Trump guy you want is over there…”