Recent weeks have made it clear that Democrats don’t know fascism, even when it is staring back at them.

On fascism, the Father of Fascism, Benito Mussolini, wrote: “The foundation of Fascism is the conception of the State, its character, its duty, and its aim. Fascism conceives of the State as an absolute, in comparison with which all individuals or groups are relative, only to be conceived of in their relation to the State.”

If ever the American government viewed its authority as “absolute,” if even individual Americans were under the notion that they were “only to be conceived of in their relation to the State,” it was shortly after COVID-19 entered the U.S.

I submit to you that the COVID policies—shutdowns and lockdowns; “stay home, stay safe;” mandatory masking, social distancing, testing, and vaccines; and so on—perpetuated by the American left and those like-minded were the greatest demonstration of fascism the United States has ever known. In the nearly 250-year history of the U.S., never before has the American government exercised such power over its citizenry as it did in the name of “slowing the spread,” “following the science,” and the like. And never before in the history of the U.S. has the exercise of government power been so misinformed and misguided, with such disastrous results.

Of course, with elections looming, in an attempt to escape responsibility for their COVID tyranny, Democrats and their lackeys in the media want to blame “the pandemic,” and whenever possible, Donald Trump and the MAGA agenda. For example, last week, the American drive-by media widely reported on the “dismal learning loss” suffered by U.S. students “due to the pandemic.” The idea that “the pandemic erased two decades of progress in math and reading” was frequently parroted by said media.

Tens of millions of American students suffered far more than “learning loss” from the late winter of 2020 until now, but almost none of this was “due to the pandemic.” Rather, it was all due to a widespread foolish—and often downright evil—reaction to the pandemic.

When confronted with the national test results that revealed the scope of the “learning loss” suffered by U.S. students, “turning reality on its head,” the Biden administration pointed the finger at Trump and the GOP and said that re-opening schools “was the work of Democrats in spite of Republicans.” As Guy Benson at Townhall.com noted, this is a “brazen lie.”

Indeed, one of the political reasons that schools remained closed in Democratic party areas and states for as long as they did is because President Trump called for them to be open, and because designated villains, like Gov. Ron DeSantis, were following the data and permitting in-person learning to resume. In an era of negative partisanship, kids were actively and needlessly hurt—with lasting deleterious impact—because politically addicted adults didn't want [to] admit the 'wrong' sort of people were right about something. Just look at the metrics on states that opened schools first versus last. If [White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre’s] pathetic spin were accurate, the red states would be the holdouts.

We all know that’s not true. It’s the opposite of the truth. Conservative governors were assailed for ‘killing’ children as they made the right call, as Democrat-funded teachers' unions blasted school re-openings as white supremacy, and other such insulting nonsense. They cannot run away from their policies, and they cannot run away from their words. 

While the school—and the many school-related activity—shutdowns across the U.S. were tragic, the effects of foolish and unnecessary COVID policies on small American businesses were even worse. “Learning loss” can be recovered. Tens of thousands of small businesses destroyed due to the COVID lockdowns and shutdowns will never return. Barely six months into our COVID hysteria—as I noted in November of 2020—it was clear that fascist government policies were devastating small businesses throughout the U.S. As I noted at the time,

In spite of the science and the months of real-time data that proved it unnecessary, the left has persisted with shutting down businesses and churches. As a result of these state-enforced lockdowns, hundreds of thousands of small businesses in the U.S. have shut down—many of them permanently so.

Data from late September show that between March 1 and August 31, a total of 163,735 businesses on Yelp—which is especially representative of small businesses—closed. According to Yelp, about 60 percent of these businesses (nearly 98,000) will never reopen. The Yelp data reveal that small restaurants and retail stores have been hit particularly hard. It has made zero sense that Walmart, Target, Home Depot—none of whom were requiring masks as late as middle July—and the like have been allowed to remain open, while your local diner, gun store, or gym was forced to close.

By June of 2021, COVID shutdowns and lockdowns had destroyed nearly 40% of U.S. small businesses. As Pajamas Media reported at the time:

While bureaucrats gave Walmart, Costco, Lowe’s, and other big-box stores “essential” status, allowing them to stay open during the COVID pandemic, 38.9% of America’s small businesses, the providers of most of the country’s jobs, were forced to close based on fear, hackneyed social-distancing rules, early ignorance about transmission, and an insatiable desire by governors to micromanage the affairs of men.

Nothing says “micromanaging the affairs of men” like forcing men (and women, and children) to take medicine they don’t want or don’t need.

Shortly after COVID-19 began to spread, the rush and the race for a vaccine was on. When the so-called “vaccines” were announced, government throughout the U.S. could hardly contain their desire to enact “vaccine” mandates. We were constantly told that the COVID “vaccines” would actually do what vaccines do: prevent one from getting what one is vaccinated against.

In early 2021, Dr. Anthony Fauci said that the COVID “vaccines” provide “a 94 to 95 percent efficacy in preventing clinically recognizable disease.”

In a July, 2021 townhall, Joe Biden himself said, “You’re not going to get COVID if you have these vaccinations.”

Natural immunity was all but ignored, and these deceptions were repeated, or implied, ad nauseum. Those bent towards totalitarianism were eager to create “vaccine” mandates.

These mandates had deadly results. Hospital staff shortages were created, all-cause mortality exploded among many groups, and once new COVID variants arose, the world’s most “vaccinated” countries showed shockingly high COVID infection rates. We were told that unless populations were sufficiently “vaccinated,” a “pandemic of the unvaccinated” would result. Instead, a “pandemic of the vaccinated” developed.

The cost of the American left’s COVID fascism was not only measured in trillions of dollars lost, but countless sickness and death as well. Never forget the COVID fascists who for far too long plagued America. Most certainly remember them when it comes time to vote. If we don’t hold them accountable—and most importantly, remove them from power—I can almost guarantee you that they will do this again when the next “crisis” arrives.

Trevor is the author of The Miracle and Magnificence of America, and the owner and operator of a website dedicated to the intersection of politics, science, faith, and reason: www.TrevorGrantThomas.com

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