A very thoughtful piece, but like most pundits, you still tap-dance around the very obvious truth: the Republicans have become the American fascist party. Sure, they could be called “Jacksonian,” or “nationalist,” but those are weasel-words that obfuscate their real meaning. The Republican party has been drifting ever rightward for decades, and there was never any “journey from” racism. They used “small government,” “states’ rights,” “law and order” and “welfare reform” as dog-whistles for their racist base. In every other way — hypernationalism, scapegoating “others,” militarism, disdain for freedom of the press, and on and on — they fit the definition of fascists. Let’s call a spade a spade.