Trump’s Next Term Could See America’s First True Oligarchs, Warns Democracy Activist Garry Kasparov

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-musk-america-oligarchs_n_6746b6efe4b0800c73f710a5

30 comments

  1. If one didn’t see this coming then shame on them. The whole campaign against DJT was against autocracy, for law/order, and protection of the constitution.

    The fact that he still won feels like I am in a parallel universe.

  3. Kasparov’s got some troubling points to raise—and as a survivor of the fall of the USSR, he’s speaking from a position of authority. Bit longer, but his quoted insights are valuable even if they are unsettling as hell:

    > “There’s certain lessons that I think we can learn from Russia in the ’90s. The blurring of the lines between business and politics, which is called oligarchy by classical political philosophy ― it’s extremely dangerous,” Kasparov told HuffPost in a recent interview….
    >
    > “Musk could be the first oligarch,” he said. “Having the largest private contractor of the U.S. government potentially being in the position of supervising the entire U.S. budget? I mean, just think about it. If this is not classical oligarchy, what is it?”
    >
    > “Oligarchy is not about the amount of money,” Kasparov went on. “Oligarchy is about blurring the line, erasing the line, between business and government.” …

    >“Presidential power will allow him to pardon these people, which will send a message to his supporters across the country: They will always be immune if they act on behalf of Donald Trump,” he said.

  8. We have basically had oligarchs since Citizens United

  10. Headlines like these keep making me think of the old line, “What was your first clue, Sherlock?”

  11. To be fair to Kasparov, he’s been saying this for years. The guy is no fool.

  13. What do you mean first? Everything happening now has been fomenting for generations. The downfall of American democracy has been happening for awhile now, each generation ceding more and more power to obscenely wealthy powerbrokers.

  14. Trumps first term brought out the first “true oligarchs” go look at wealth distribution during that time and since. Its only gonna get worse.

  15. Will wait till oligarchs start “jumping” out of windows. Welcome to Russia!

  17. Can you guys hurry up and get to the ‘throwing out of windows’ stage for them at least?

  20. This gets toplines because it affects elites first, but eventually everyone. For the rest of us, oligarchy manifests as unelected unaccountable elites enriching themselves at our expense, out in the open, with impunity. This quickly trickles down in the form of people realizing the new rules are cheat or be cheated on. Steal before stolen from. It flips the judeo-christian moral order that supposedly underpins our constitution and founding values on its head.

    You will know when the new hellscape arrives when you hear friends or family complaining (or bragging) that they had to pay a bribe for : their kids to go to a coveted public school, get on a coveted club team, to get a promotion, to get a job, to keep their job when mass layoffs happen, when they get stopped at an airport on the street by law enforcement for petty infractions, when they are at risk of imprisonment for a felony, to avoid paying taxes or to get a license.

    Corruption is a virus that infects, spreads, degrades, then consumes its host. It needs new victims and opportunities to flourish. While elites may materially flourish it internally weakens a country and set’s stage for revolution. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is the kind of stuff that happens when oligarchic corruption metastasizes to a point where an emerging democratic neighbor is viewed as a mortal threat that must be destroyed at all cost.

    The only way to keep this virus (oligarchy) from taking over and killing the host (us) is to speak out against it when you see it, document and spread the injustice online to foster outrage at the betrayal of our American values and impose costs on the perpetrators, and be ready to make real sacrifices to maintain your individual rights and dignity.

    Project 2025 – Making Anti-Americanism Great Again.

  21. America’s had true oligrachs for a long time. The people just haven’t known their names, or for awhile we’ve been subjected to a charm offensive by them.

  22. Our founding fathers are absolutely rolling in their graves.

  23. It’s been an oligarchy forever. It’s just out in the open now.

  24. It’s cute to think oligarchs haven’t been here for some time. The only change is that they will now be naked in the open. The public will continue to ignore it.

  26. It’s already too late. I wish it wasn’t but uh, here we are.

  27. First oligarchs??? No sir this is just the newest generation. America has a revolving door when it has to do with small circles of families owning the country

  29. First true oligarchs? Pretty sure they’re already here.

  30. guys we already have them. everytime the republicans are in charge the doors are thrown wide open to corporate america and the oil companies in particular. Rex Tillerson was the head of exxon moble and also the secretary of state under trump

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