Going into the weekend, Donald Trump and his allies were feeling themselves, after Russia's President Vladimir Putin ordered a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Clearly, Trumpists thought this was the moment to press their advantage, praising Putin and doubling down on overt white nationalist and fascist sentiment at home.
Trump spent the week gushing over Putin, calling him a "genius" and insisting he's "playing Biden like a drum." Tucker Carlson of Fox News argued that the only reason Americans hate Putin was because they were victims of a propaganda campaign and that the real enemy was liberals at home. Anchors on Fox News repeatedly contrasted the supposed decadence of a "woke" American culture with the "serious civilization" of Russia's authoritarian government. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., made a surprise appearance at a white nationalist event Friday night. Right before and after her speech, the openly racist organizer, Nick Fuentes, led the crowd in a chant of "Putin, Putin" and praised Adolph Hitler.
