Trump, on supporters who beat Hispanic man: 'People who are following me are very passionate'

[eridani]

And vicious amoral sociopaths to boot.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/08/20/1413904/-Trump-on-supporters-who-beat-Hispanic-man-People-who-are-following-me-are-very-passionate

If you don't want the rest of the nation asking obnoxious questions about whether or not your new hard-right movement represents a new Americanized form of not-very-well-camouflagued fascism, you probably need to avoid talk about rounding up millions of undesirables and forcibly removing them from the population.

You probably don't want your movement's influential pundits to be gaming out, on their programs, how you'd build concentration camps to house the ones that you couldn't deport and make use of their labor.

And when followers of your movement take what seems to them to be a perfectly logical next step, opportunistically attacking an ethnic-looking "undesirable" on the street and caving in his nose, among other inflicted injuries, you probably do not want your highest-profile movement leader to shake his head and condemn the attack while at the same time explaining that if it happened, it happened because his followers just tend to love their nation so very much.

The homeless man was lying on the ground, shaking, when police arrived early Wednesday. His face was soaked, apparently with urine, his nose broken, his chest and arms battered.

Police said two brothers from South Boston ambushed the 58-year-old as he slept outside of a Dorchester MBTA stop, and targeted him because he is Hispanic. One of the brothers said he was inspired in part by GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump.

Trump, told of the alleged assault, said “it would be a shame . . . I will say that people who are following me are very passionate. They love this country and they want this country to be great again. They are passionate.”

[pampango]

1. Constant appeals to fear and emotion do have the affect of making believers feel "passionate".

In a bad way.

Historically, the right has blamed national problems on ethnic/racial minorities, non-majority religions, foreigners, etc. Now the modern republican party is adding immigrants (in their view a version of the historic conservative antipathy towards minorities and foreigners) to the group whom they can feel "passionate" about and blame for our problems.

And our 1% smiles, nods their collective heads and says "That's right. Those poor Hispanics are the cause of ALL your problems. Just go after those poor people and your problems will be solved."

[Android3.14]

2. "new Americanized form of not-very-well-camouflagued fascism"

You have that right.

[CTyankee]

3. Yes, this is how it starts...

I always hate comparisons with Hitler but when you think about it, he was ranting against the Jews early on. So the comparison here is eerily familiar...and scary...

[smirkymonkey]

4. There is a long history of racism in Irish Catholic Boston.

Trump was the catalyst, but this is something that has been going on for ages.