'What's he got to lose?' Fascism expert says Trump's only option is to 'stage a coup'
Nothing is being done to curb Donald Trump from encouraging violence in his name – so it's only going to get worse, an expert wrote Thursday.
Threats against judges and prosecutors are escalating, and members of the grand jury in Georgia have become targets of some Trump supporters with their names, photos and, in some cases, addresses posted online. Judge Tanya Chutkan, in particular, was targeted with racist threats to kill her if Trump is not elected in 2024.
Meanwhile, Republicans – whether they're Trump allies or not – aren't stepping in to lower the temperature.
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Salon's Chauncey Devega emailed Dr. Justin Frank, who previously taught psychiatry at George Washington University and penned the book "Trump on the Couch."
According to Frank, Chutkan is the one that met Trump's threats head-on when he was arraigned in Washington.
"Medical care has three basic stages: prevention of illness, treatment of acute illness and treatment of chronic illness," he told Devega. "The threat to American democracy's health from Donald Trump is real; already we are dealing with chronic political illness that continues to proliferate untreated."
He called Chutkan "courageous" for "trying to prevent further damage" to the country from Trump and his "mob."
"Yet the remedy of surrounding courthouses with police protection is weak tea, as we've already seen when it comes to preventing the kind of violence Trump engineered on Jan. 6, 2021," he explained, highlighting the need for preventative measures.
"The disgraced former president continues to play both ends against the middle, trying to intimidate some while provoking others. He remains a dangerous, mutating virus that requires preventative measures," said Frank. "If only there were a vaccine for 'Virus 45' that spews threats that continue to poison our national sanity itself."
"He should be held in custody before trial, if at all possible. He has been granted bail his entire life. It doesn't work. As President George W. Bush once said, 'Containment doesn't hold water.' I'm inclined to agree; it certainly has no effect on Donald Trump."
Brynn Tannehill, who wrote "American Fascism: How the GOP Is Subverting Democracy," reinforced the concept that MAGA is becoming dangerously violent.
"Something in excess of three-quarters of all terrorism in the U.S. since 9/11 has come from right-wing sources, and only about 4 percent from the left," Tannehill told Devega. "My sources tell me that federal law enforcement is concerned about what will happen after Nov. 7, 2024, regardless of who wins, but much more so if Trump loses. This weekend we saw Matt Gaetz standing on a stage with Trump arguing that the only path to meaningful change is violence."
She went on to cite an incident last week in Utah in which a man posted on his social media that he was waiting for the FBI to visit with his gun. When he met them at the door with that gun, they shot him, according to reports.
"Trump himself will do anything to stay out of prison, which is looking more and more likely if he doesn't win in 2024," said Tannehill. "He will absolutely attempt to incite violence again if he thinks his next stop is prison. What's he got to lose at that point? If he doesn't stage a coup, he's in prison for the rest of his life. If his coup fails, he's in prison for the rest of his life. If it succeeds, he's safe as long as he hangs on."
"For Trump, there's literally no downside to encouraging violence if he loses, and his followers are getting the message, just like the guy in Utah."
For Trump, it's a no-win situation where the only option is to flee to Russia, or an outright war against the United States.
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