It’s now clear that Trump is preparing his base for a Civil War

This is where we are as a nation.

“Now, if I don’t get elected, it’s gonna be a bloodbath. That’s going to be the least of it…It’s going to be a bloodbath for the country.”

Those were the deeply alarming words Donald Trump bellowed at a rally Saturday in Ohio to his angry followers. We’ve never heard words like this before from a major presidential candidate. But then again, our nation has never faced a candidate for President like Trump who incited a terrorist attack on our Capitol to remain in power despite losing re-election.

We have known for years that Donald Trump—like all fascist leaders—has encouraged his supporters to commit violence on his behalf. We saw that beginning with his 2016 rallies where he encouraged people to “knock the crap” out of behalf up on his behalf –even vowing to pay their legal fees.  Over the years there have been countless acts of violence by his supporters on his behalf that built to a crescendo with MAGA’s Jan 6 terrorist attack on the Capitol to keep their beloved Fuhrer in power despite losing.   

But now it’s clear that Trump wants more than isolated acts of violence from his followers. He wants a full-fledged civil war. I’ve never said that before but when you look at Trump’s words Saturday vowing a blood bath--together with his other alarming comments clearly designed to celebrate and incite violence --that’s the only conclusion that can be reached.

To be clear: I still don’t believe there will be a civil war.  There are simply not enough people in MAGA who will actually commit violence to wage a true civil war. But a civil war—or at least a “blood bath” as Trump put it—is exactly what he wants.

Perhaps violence is again Trump’s Plan B like was the case with Jan 6 when he incited that attack after all his legal efforts to overturn the election failed. But this time, Trump believes he can use MAGA violence after he loses in 2024 to trade for a pardon so he doesn’t have to serve jail time.

The Trump campaign laughably tried to clean up Trump’s warning of a blood bath with a bizarre statement that Trump meant there would be an economic blood bath if he lost in November--which makes zero sense given we now have a very strong economy under the Biden admin.  Further undermining this spin attempt is Trump’s track record of inciting and celebrating political violence. No, Trump meant there would a be a violent blood bath if he lost—or at least he wants to scare people into believing that will happen if they don’t vote for him.

In fact, at Saturday’s rally Trump celebrated his MAGA supporters still in jail for the Jan 6 attack.  Trump—who is currently out on bail--opened his speech by praising the Jan 6 terrorists, calling them “hostages” and “unbelievable patriots,” while vowing to pardon them if elected. In reality, as I wrote about in January, the Jan 6 attackers still in prison are the worst of the worst including the leaders of the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers militia who were convicted of seditious conspiracy—as well as those who viciously beat police officers.  These people are not “patriots,” they are MAGA terrorists.

Trump’s vow to pardon these people is about sending a message that if you commit violence to help me in the future, I will pardon you if I win. As authoritarian expert Ruth Ben-Ghiat recently explained to me, fascist leaders of the past have used pardons in the same way Trump is pledging to do, namely as a way to incentivize future violence or crimes on their behalf.

Trump’s warning of a blood bath if he loses must also be viewed in the context of Trump’s other recent alarming words such as vowing if elected to be focused on “retribution.”  We know Trump’s base would be ecstatic to see Trump punish –or even kill—his critics.

But there is something else Trump has increasingly posted online and stated at rallies that should cause the hair on the back of your neck to stand up. That is Trump calling the 2024 election “the final battle.”  And even more jarring is Trump’s repeated social media post in all caps that reads, “2024 IS OUR FINAL BATTLE.” 

Clearly Trump wants his followers to believe that the 2024 election is something far bigger than an election. Rather, losing it means they will lose everything—thus, raising the stakes. To that end, on Saturday Trump told the crowd that if he loses in 2024: “I don’t think you’re going to have another election, or certainly not an election that’s meaningful.”

Obviously, this is projection by Trump given he attempted a coup and is now facing federal and state felonies for those actions. But he’s telling his supporters that if he loses, your democracy comes to an end.  

Given the history of MAGA violence, this type of language by Trump is much more than just about getting the vote out. Trump is priming his base for action, taking them to the doorstep of violence. And if need be, Trump like an Al Qaeda recruiter, will push them through that door to wage violence on behalf of the cause.  

Trump is a dangerous and desperate man who is facing the prospect of being convicted of various crimes and dying in a prison cell. To avoid that fate, Trump will literally do anything from selling our military secrets to hostile nations in exchange for asylum to inciting violence—or even a civil war.

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