'It's his form of projection': the fallout from Trump's speech referencing Nazi Germany

Donald Trump is no stranger to dangerous rhetoric. It’s kind of his signature. But this weekend, he took it to a whole other level. During his speech at a donor retreat, Donald Trump compared the Biden White House to the Gestapo police force in Nazi Germany. The White House was quick to condemn those comments, calling it quote the appalling rhetoric of fascists. For more, let’s bring in Sam Stein, veteran journalist and White House editor for Politico. And Michael Steele is here, former chairman of the Republican National Committee and former Lieutenant governor of Maryland. He coasts Co host the weekend right here on MSNBC. Michael, this is not the first time Donald Trump has used language like this. In some ways, it’s like, I’m the Nazi. No, you’re the Nazi. Like, what on earth is he doing this for? Well, it’s because it’s his form of projection. He’s heard a lot of folks referred to his rhetoric and his behavior in those terms. So he’s just throwing it back at at Biden and and it’s it’s what, you know, little boys do in the schoolyard and that’s how they play. And and you you framed it just right. If I’m a Nazi, you’re a Nazi. You know your Mama wears combat boots. All of that crazy. But they’re behind it, though. A level of seriousness too, in that what Donald Trump I think is starting to do and we’ll see and hear more of this, is set up what will ultimately be the fascist form of American politics that Donald Trump wants to play with going into the full throated, you know, game of the of the of the campaign this fall. And. And so I think we should just be prepared to hear more of this from him. Yeah, he did this with donors, but it it will get louder, It will become more forceful, and it’ll be more pointed and directed at at Biden and and people in this administration as a way to remind his his voters exactly what’s at stake for them. Sam, there were some big donors there. But the right wing All Stars were not no Lauren Bover. No Matt Gaetz. No Marjorie Taylor Green. I mean these are Trump loyalists to like the 10th degree. And it’s even been reported that Trump is mad, mad, mad at MTG. What’s going on? Well, first, should we gloss over the Your Mama wears combat boots line? I was not familiar that that was an insult. But I will. Yeah, I wasn’t so familiar with that one. I mean if he said that Brooklyn. Those are the coolest moms out there. Little old school. OK, yeah, too old school for me. Back to your point. Yeah, the the reports that Trump is mad at MTG are valid. I think you know Trump. I’m not going to say this is an effort at a sophisticating his operation, but he’s also no dummy. He recognizes that any sort of in, you know, chaos within the Republican ranks, in this case, if they were to go through another motion to vacate the speakership, which Marjorie Taylor Green wants to do, anything like that that reminds the voters of a chaotic Republican Party is not good for Trump. And fundamentally, as we all know, Trump’s bottom line is what’s good for Trump. And So what he wants, as much as anything else, is to have a sort of stable Republican Party heading into the election season. He hasn’t done exactly everything he can to make that happen. He is not Richard to Nikki Haley, for instance, but he doesn’t want chaos. He wants the focus to be squarely on Biden and to the degree he can make it about that better for him. Michael, the combat boots was sort of icing on the cake. It it, it was an unexpected treat that you delivered. But here’s why I wanted you to join us tonight in an op-ed, the former Lieutenant governor, which you once were of the state of Georgia, Jeff Duncan, has a piece out where he said he is voting for Joe Biden in in November and he wants other Republicans to join him. He writes this quote. The GOP will never rebuild until we move on from the Trump era. Unlike Trump, I belong to the GOP my entire life. This November, I am voting for a decent person I disagree with on policy over a criminal defendant without a moral compass. Now Georgia is a crucial purple state. Is Duncan a Republican with enough influence there to get people to listen? Yeah I believe so. Look he he served well and and everything that I’ve been able to to gauge people liked him and and and he did a good job as Lieutenant governor he’s known in the state he’s former baseball player and and and athlete and and so he’s got he’s got sort of a a a gravitas with with voters and and people in the state that can be useful in helping to create the appropriate structure for Republicans and center right independent voters who otherwise would maybe lean more towards Trump because well you know going back to mom she’d be mad at me if I voted for a Democrat. There are a lot of efforts underway that I’m involved with and others are involved with and I really applaud the Lieutenant governor for taking a very bold stance here and in helping to frame and create that permission structure to say it’s OK because we are facing a very clear choice between a decent man who has you know his shortcomings. But one of them is not wanting to be a dictator. One of them is not wanting to create concentration camps and Texas. One of them is not trying to tear up the Constitution. And certainly one of them is not blaming everybody else for his failings. And so the more you’re able to create that structure, the more Republicans that are out there voicing that opinion that it’s OK to do that, the more I think you’ll see those numbers begin to move it. In a state like Georgia, that will matter because Georgia will be in play for both Republicans and Democrats this November. So I applaud the Lieutenant governor. Welcome him to to that to the ranks of those of us who are going to vote for a decent man as opposed to a wannabe dictator and keep the country from falling further into decline. He doesn’t just talk about who he’s going to vote for, he calls out big name Republicans like Chris Sununu and Bill Barr saying that their choice to support Trump is dead wrong. Why is it, Sam, that Duncan sees the light here and why this doesn’t make sense. And those other significant Republicans, despite Trump dumping on them, even after saying they’re going to vote for him, why are they? It’s a really good question. You know, Chris Sununu in particular was kind of an interesting case study. He was up in New Hampshire campaigning for Nikki Haley and making a case, essentially, that Trump was pure chaos. That’ll be almost irresponsible to realize, to bring back into the White House. But he always then say, you know what, it was still over Joe Biden. I got actually got the chance to press him on them witness in exchange where he was pressed on it. And his logic was that Biden’s people around the people around Biden were more radical than the people who Trump would surround himself with. Which is just it’s an unconventional reason to support a candidate. I don’t know why he has calculated this. Christine obviously has a future in Republican politics. But Bill Barton and to Michelle point I think you know the Jeff Duncan the world. Look I don’t think Georgia voters are going to be like oh Jeff Duncan is supporting about and therefore I should too. But he does, to Michelle Point, give people a permission structure. And I think that’s what Biden needs, is more Republicans out there saying, look, it’s okay to break with your party in this instance and vote for Biden.