Just to keep things straight, we can go back to Ayn Rand’s very useful distinction between fascism and socialism, which is that in the context of both being highly statist philosophies, there is no difference. Both are against individual property rights. However, she pointed out this difference. The socialists advocate collective (state) ownership and control of property, while the fascists allow the retention of titular (de jure) individual ownership but decimate property rights through state control (de facto).
In these terms, Trump is reducing the fascism in American government by his deregulation efforts (ceteris paribus). See here for a summary.
Meanwhile, all the Democrat candidates for the 2020 nomination have endorsed major socialist measures that will, if enacted, result in increases in collective state ownership. The very same measures also increase state control in areas where they do not cause state ownership. Thus, the Democrats can be accused of desiring both greater fascism and greater socialism.
Democrats champion the post-modern version of a “mixed economy”, namely, one that implements statist measures from both statist philosophies, fascism and socialism. Republicans are the “me-too” party, Trump being a maverick whom they would cast off if they could.
3:23 pm on April 16, 2019
