Fact check: Everything trump is doing is exactly how hitler did things back in 1933

1. Summary of the results

The analyses reveal that multiple historians and scholars have identified specific parallels between Trump's actions and Hitler's rise to power in 1933, though they emphasize these are similarities rather than identical approaches.

Key similarities identified include:

• Rhetorical strategies: Both leaders employed grandiose language and appeals to emotion to connect with their audiences ^{[1] [2]}
• Nationalist rhetoric and populist self-staging: Both used similar rhetorical demagoguery to stoke national passions ^{[2] [3] [4]}
• Attacks on democratic institutions: Both showed disregard for democratic norms and targeted the media as enemies ^[1]
• Exploitation of grievances: Both capitalized on economic grievances and positioned themselves as outsiders who could fix a "broken and corrupt government" ^{[1] [3]}
• Territorial expansion desires: Trump's interest in acquiring Greenland has been compared to Hitler's concept of 'Lebensraum' (living space) ^[1]
• Targeting internal enemies: Both leaders multiplied attacks on "enemies within" with ruthless determination ^[1]

Prominent historians making these comparisons include Peter Hayes, Christopher Browning, and Timothy Ryback ^{[1] [5]}.

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

The original statement lacks several crucial nuances that historians emphasize:

• Historians stress these are similarities, not identical methods: Christopher Browning specifically notes that Trump's actions are more akin to a "legal revolution" rather than Hitler's violent coup approach ^[1]
• Scale and specific targeting differences: While Hitler targeted specific groups for systematic persecution, Trump has not engaged in the same level of targeted persecution, though he has attacked various "enemies within" ^[1]
• Democratic institutional differences: The analyses suggest Trump operates within existing legal frameworks more than Hitler did initially ^[1]
• Political opposition exists: Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker's public warnings about authoritarianism demonstrate that democratic opposition and free speech continue to function, unlike in 1933 Germany ^[6]
• Republican pushback: The analyses show that Republicans accused Pritzker of using "divisive and inflammatory rhetoric" when making Hitler comparisons, indicating ongoing political debate rather than suppressed opposition ^[6]

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The original statement contains several problematic elements:

• Overgeneralization: The claim that "everything" Trump is doing matches Hitler's 1933 actions is an absolute statement not supported by the nuanced historical analyses, which identify specific similarities while noting important differences ^[1]
• Temporal compression: The statement implies Trump's entire approach mirrors Hitler's specific 1933 tactics, but the analyses show the comparisons span broader patterns of authoritarian behavior rather than exact replication of a single year's events ^{[2] [3]}
• Lack of specificity: The analyses provide detailed examples of rhetorical strategies, institutional attacks, and propaganda techniques, while the original statement makes a sweeping claim without acknowledging the complexity historians describe ^{[5] [4]}
• Missing acknowledgment of differences: The statement fails to recognize that historians who make these comparisons also emphasize significant differences in methods, context, and outcomes ^[1]

Political figures like Governor Pritzker benefit from making stark Hitler comparisons to mobilize opposition and warn about democratic threats, while Republican critics benefit from dismissing such comparisons as inflammatory rhetoric to defend their political positions ^[6].