Anderson Cooper had heard enough.
The CNN anchor used some off-color language to dismiss ever-more-strained defenses Donald Trump's fascist campaign rhetoric. Republican former Lt. Gov. of California Abel Maldonado was on the news network on Wednesday — trying to defend Trump's decision to call immigrants “animals” and progressives "the enemy within" — when Cooper finally snapped.
“He’s a New Yorker, he’s a fighter, he’s a leader,” Maldonado told fellow panelist Carl Bernstein, when the Watergate reporter asked if Trump used "fascistic" language.
Bernstein: Is he a fascist?
— Acyn (@Acyn) October 17, 2024
Maldonado: No!
Bernstein: Does he say fascistic things?
Maldonado: No! He’s a New Yorker!
Cooper: The idea that Donald Trump is a New Yorker and this is what New Yorkers say is just bullshit pic.twitter.com/6pRHu8Kdkq
Cooper, born and raised in New York City, didn't buy the “New Yorker” defense.
“The idea that Donald Trump is a New Yorker, and this is just what New Yorkers say, that’s bullsh*t,” Cooper said.
The TV host pointed out that the Central Park Five, a group of innocent teens Trump once argued should be put to death, were also New Yorkers and weren’t espousing fascist rhetoric. Cooper labeled Maldonado’s picture of tough and honest New Yorkers as “a comic book.”
Bernstein isn't alone in calling Trump an outright fascist. The former president's rhetoric has taken a notably nativist turn in recent weeks, with Trump hosting entire rallies dedicated to bad-mouthing immigrants and promising mass deportation. The Republican candidate has regularly accused immigrants of having “bad genes” and peddled far-right conspiracies about them eating pets.
Bernstein's former reporting partner Bob Woodward found out that the belief Trump is a fascist even extends to his one-time associates. Former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Mark Milley warned that Trump is a “fascist to the core” in Woodward's upcoming book "War."
