U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media as he arrives at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., October 5, 2025. REUTERS/Aaron Schwartz
An analyst warned of a "dangerous rot inside the modern Republican Party under [President Donald] Trump" amid rising "Nazi rhetoric" that Republicans appear unclear on how to address.
Just in the last few weeks, an alarming number of Neo-Nazi-related scandals — including the leaked Young Republicans racist, homophobic and antisemitic messages and Paul Ingrassia's messages saying he has a "Nazi streak" — are tied to the GOP and its followers, Bulwark Managing Editor Sam Stein and journalist and political commentator John Avlon discussed Thursday in a Substack interview.
Avlon has covered Neo-Nazism and written his book "Wing Nuts" about it. Stein asked him about "what Republicans should do about this — and the divide that's emerged on the right over whether to condemn it, or to do the JD Vance thing, which is there are no enemies to my right."
Stein and Avlon pointed to how Vice President JD Vance appears unable to respond to the problem, and this "strand of Neo-Nazism that we've seen that has become more problematic."
Vance this month said the following on late MAGA influencer Charlie Kirk's podcast:
"By focusing on what kids are saying in a group chat, grow up, I'm sorry. Focus on the real issues. Don't focus on what kids say in group chats," Vance said.
But the problem is that these are not kids — they're actually people over 18, in their 20s and 30s, Stein and Avlon explain.
"These are people who are old enough to know better," Avlon said.
Vance appears to be stumped on how to respond to the rhetoric.
"But the fact that JD Vance, Yale Law graduate, smart guy, embraced that no enemies to the right attitude, with regard to that Hitler loving group chat, is the problem," Avlon adds.
It's also a sign of a larger problem for Republicans.
"This is about people expressing love for, admiration with, or self-association with Hitler," Avlon said. "Much of the time... when opponents accuse their political opponents of being Nazis or being like Hitler, that means you've lost the argument. But what happens when your opponents compare themselves to Hitler? This is not a tough call. This is not within the universe of what should be a tough call."
Avlon cited the rise of Christian nationalism and militia adjacent-belief systems following the election of former President Barack Obama as playing a role in white extremism.
"You've got this percolating beneath the surface, revealed in group chats or texts that are released, shows that there is a dangerous rot inside the modern Republican Party under [President Donald] Trump," Avlon said. "It does not mean that all Trump supporters are Nazi adjacent, at all. I want to triple underline that. But one is too much. This number of stories should be alarming and should cause people to question — deeply — what animal spirits we've been tapping into. And it's part of a larger trend."
Why Did the GOP Stop Caring About Nazis? by The Bulwark
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