From RefuseFascism.org:

A Hellish Week of Fascist Insanity April 13—16, 2020

by Coco Das

April 20, 2020 | revcom.us

 

Revcom.us Editors’ Update: As we go to press, mobilizations to “reopen America” continue to spread. Most are directly funded and organized by fascist forces like the Christian fascists, Koch Brothers, and people close to the Trump regime, and others are being linked and drawn into the fascist movement around this question. Some have had a broader draw than fascist thugs and open white supremacists, including people anxious about their economic situations and lacking scientific understanding of the pandemic. These protests are enthusiastically promoted by fascist media like Fox News, and openly encouraged by Trump himself, in an attempt to force through “from below” the rapid reopening of the economy that Trump desires—along with serving as mobilizations against Democratic governors, health professionals and scientists who oppose premature easing of restrictions related to controlling the pandemic.

Monday, April 13

The White House Coronavirus Taskforce Press Briefing reached a pinnacle of fascist lies and insults, including the following:

• A video of Trump’s “success” in handling the crisis, which began with the statement “THE MEDIA MINIMIZED THE RISK FROM THE START” followed by a clip from the Fox Fascist New Network’s Hannity Show—a brief compilation of three highly edited, decontextualized news reports that appeared to downplay the threat of the virus. This was presented as proof that the media as a whole was to blame. Then the timeline of the regime’s response began at March 2, more than 6 weeks after Trump was first briefed on the virus. Then came the collage of governors from both parties praising and thanking Trump and Pence.
• A now routine attack on a female reporter’s question (Paula Reid, CBS) about the missing month of February: “You’re so disgraceful. It’s so disgraceful the way you ... look, look, you know you’re a fake. Your whole network, the way you cover it, is fake.”
• While insisting he had the authority over governors to decide when to reopen state authorities—in blatant violation of the US Constitution—Trump went so far as to declare absolutely no limit on his authority: Trump said, “When somebody’s the president of the United States, the authority is total.”
• In the face of a fascist concerted campaign to #FireFauci, with one retweet from Trump himself, Dr. Fauci was compelled to give a conciliatory speech praising Trump’s disastrous handling of the COVID crisis. No doubt this was done in an attempt to keep his position in order to better advocate for a reality-based public health response to global pandemic.

NOTE TO MEDIA AND #RESISTANCE:

Here’s what did NOT happen at the April 13 press briefing:

• Trump did NOT “have a meltdown.” These are the very consistently offensive communications of a full-on, crazy-like-a-fox fascist.
• Trump was NOT “a toddler having a tantrum.” A toddler can be put in a time-out corner, yet Trump is the leader of the most powerful country in the world, and we have not yet driven him out.
• Trump was NOT being “ignorant of what he can or cannot legally do.” He was telling you what he can get away with. Look at the last three+ years of his record on what he supposedly can’t do and what has stopped him. (Not much.)

Tuesday, April 14

The Trump/Pence regime froze funding to the World Health Organization, a move that can bankrupt the organization during a pandemic when international coordination is critical. This move:

• says “fuck you” to the people of the world with its disgusting “America First” chauvinism. The W.H.O. provides critical research and resources to the entire world, but most critically it provides technical assistance to poor countries that do not have the healthcare infrastructure to handle a pandemic like this. In addition to COVID-19, W.H.O. also provides resources to treat diseases such as malaria, AIDS, polio, and Ebola.
• throws xenophobic red meat to the fascists who call this the “Chinese virus,” scapegoats Asians, and wants a check on the rising superpower of China, which threatens U.S. dominance over the world.
• again shows that this regime will tear up norms and change the rules. Money for the W.H.O. has already been allocated by Congress, but Trump has a history of bypassing congressional approval to divert allocated funds to other programs: See one example here.

Wednesday, April 15

Chanting “Lock her up,” thousands of pro-Trump protesters, organized by the Michigan Conservative Coalition, blocked the streets with their cars (while many also defied the social distancing order and gathered at the steps of the state capitol) to force their governor to re-open the state and drop stay-at-home protocols necessary for flattening the curve.

• Also seen: Confederate flags.
• With a death toll of more than 30,000 in this country, contrast the Michigan protesters—the worst filled with passionate intensity—with the best who do not want a fascist America but have lacked the conviction to act in a way commensurate with the danger we face. Fascists have not only responded heinously to this COVID crisis, but are now using the crisis to make leaps in consolidating their fascist—openly terroristic—form of rule. We must be willing to step outside of normal channels to resist and stop this.
• Millions of us should be banging our pots and pans and flooding the streets with cars demanding explicitly and urgently: “The Trump/Pence Regime Must Go NOW!”—acting together with courage and conviction to drive out this murderous regime.

Also on Wednesday, Trump threatened to implement a NEVER-USED constitutional power to suspend both houses of Congress in order to force confirmations of his nominations for federal positions. Congress has been on an extended recess because of the pandemic, but Trump called this a “dereliction of duty.”

Thursday, April 16

The E.P.A. will weaken controls on the release of mercury and other toxic metals from oil and coal-powered plants.

These four days alone prove that the Trump/Pence regime is a CATASTROPHIC danger to humanity and the planet and must go now!

When is enough enough? The hour is late. Join us in a nationwide body bag delivery to Trump properties this weekend.

Read, sign, and share this Statement of Conscience and Call to Act. This statement concentrates hard but essential truths of what we are facing with this regime and points to a way for us to come together, with courage and conviction, to do what humanity desperately needs from us—to drive this fascist regime from power. Reading, signing and spreading the statement is a first essential step in making this a reality.

Bang your pots and pans and demand Trump/Pence #OutNow! Raise a stinking hell, because right now the fascist Trump/Pence regime is winning, humanity is losing, and this cannot stand.

Trump “press conference” April 13

Trump supporters at the Michigan State Capitol, April 14, 2020