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John, Donald Trump attacked me again yesterday on Truth Social, to engender even greater hatred of me among his loyal MAGA followers. But that’s not the whole story:
“Schiff is a sleazebag and traitor, and should be prosecuted for the damage he has done to our Country!” —Donald Trump, 1/8/23
Trump has leveled attacks like this against his enemies before. You’ve seen them. He’s been doing it for years. So what makes this one any different?
Timing.
As Trump posted this attack, thousands of rioters were storming and ransacking Brazil’s Congress, Supreme Court, and presidential palace in an insurrection that mirrored the January 6th attack on the United States Capitol.
As these events show, Trump’s ongoing attack on his opponents and our democracy — including calling for his opponents to be prosecuted — is inciting dangerous imitators around the world.
Police barricades in Brazil were forcibly crossed. Windows and doors were smashed. Papers, furniture, anything in sight was torn, burned, soiled. Rioters clad in the green, yellow, and blue of Brazil’s flag gleefully shared their escapades on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Sound familiar?
The rioters were supporters of the ousted strongman Jair Bolsonaro, the “Trump of the Tropics,” who also spread lies about the presidential election he lost, culminating in a violent early January attack on his nation’s capital.
John, this is why we cannot let Trump’s many attacks on our democracy go unanswered or accept them as normal. They are not, and they pose a grave danger to the entire idea of liberal democracy around the world. Even a twice-impeached, disgraced ex-president’s words carry weight. If we fail to respond, I fear very much for the future of democracy.
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— Adam
