WATCH: Ex-Republican warns Trump is doing lasting damage to American democracy with his constant attacks on reality
On Tuesday night, media analysts struggled to make sense of President Donald Trump's speech to the VFW today, in which he told audience members to ignore what they see in the news and just listen to Trump.
“Just stick with us. Don’t believe the crap you see from these people, the fake news,” the President yelled to the crowd, gesticulating at the journalists in the room. “Just remember what you’re watching and what you’re reading is not happening.”
Needless to say, 'Orwellian' came up as a descriptor on the cable talk shows.
On MSNBC, Steve Schmidt, a former Republican political strategist who left the GOP, outlined exactly why Trump's rhetoric was so dangerous.
"It's not just that Trump is assaulting objective truth, this is a political strategy. This is about a demand for obedience. This is the transformation of the Republican Party into a cult of personality, where what the leader says is true. What the leader feels to be true, is true."
"You are no longer living in a democracy," Schmidt concluded. Schmidt also compared many Trump supporters to a cult. "You are well on your way to doing grave and lasting damage to the pillar of the democratic republic of the United States."
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