The website for the U.S. Department of Justice states independence and impartiality as one of their values. The value statement continues to say, “We work each day to earn the public’s trust by following the facts of the law wherever they may lead, without prejudice or improper influence.” (US Department of Justice, n.d.). On January 27th, 2025, The Justice department fired several lawyers involved in prosecuting Donald Trump. The Trump administration fired the lawyers, viewing them as untrustworthy enemies. Since the Department of Justice is part of the executive branch and at the whims of the President, the Department of Justice should change the value to read, “… without prejudice, improper influence, but we will do whatever the current the President desires.” Unfortunately, this is not an organizational system that can prevent the abuse of power. Congress considered making the Justice Department independent in 1978, but decided against it. (Holzer, 2021). Now is the time to revisit this decision, but since the republicans in congress do not have enough backbone to stand up to Trump, it will not happen in the near term.
In 1933, after Adolf Hitler became Chancellor, he eliminated judges and prosecutors who were not loyal. (How did the Nazi consolidate their power?, n.d.). Besides Musk throwing a Nazi salute, are there other parallels between Trump and Hitler?
Trump and Hitler both engaged in propaganda. They create a sense of crisis (immigrants, economy, etc.), repeat key charged phrases over and over, and direct public outrage toward perceived enemies. (It’s all Biden’s fault). Trump, for example, campaigned on bringing the prices down for food, housing, etc., on day one. He backed off of that promise later. How’s the food prices everyone? How about those eggs? I bet you can’t wait for those tariffs. That will fix everything, right?
The Nazis considered Jews to be their number one enemy. They targeted other groups as well. Nazi ideology was racist, antisemitic, and ultra-nationalist. (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, n.d.). Trump’s reference to the immigrants as “poisoning the blood of our country” sounds like Hitler speaking about racial purity. (Blumenthal, 2024). Trump claims the immigrants are mentally ill, dangerous, and responsible for the crime, which is down by the way, in the US. In the book The Nazi Conscience, the author reminds us “the road to Auschwitz was paved with righteousness.” (Koonz, 2005).
Trump has, and Hitler had, strong followings and large rallies. The large rallies energized their base and reinforced their support, while also showing the world their widespread approval. The large rallies make the supporters feel like they belong to a community and can identify with each other. This is dangerous because the supporters who identify with Trump will let him do whatever he wishes and they stop thinking critically.
Are there any other similarities between Trump and Hitler? The small size of their hands come to mind.
References:
Blumenthal, S. (2024, October 7). Donald Trump’s Hitlerian logic is no mistake. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/oct/07/donald-trumps-hitlerian-logic-is-no-mistake?utm_source=chatgpt.com
Dilanian, K., & Reilly, R. J. (2025, January 27). Trump administration fires DOJ officials who worked on criminal investigations of the president. NBC News. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/trump-administration-fires-doj-officials-worked-criminal-investigation-rcna189512
Holzer, J. (2021, July 2). President’s Authority Over DOJ Jeopardizes Independence. Government Executive. https://www.govexec.com/oversight/2021/07/presidents-authority-over-doj-jeopardizes-independence/183051/
How did the Nazi consolidate their power? (n.d.). The Wiener Holocaust Library. https://www.theholocaustexplained.org/the-nazi-rise-to-power/how-did-the-nazi-gain-power/gleichschaltung/
Koonz, C. (2005). The Nazi Conscience (1st ed.). Belknap Press.
US Department of Justice. (n.d.). https://www.justice.gov/about
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. “Introduction to the Holocaust.” Holocaust Encyclopedia. https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/introduction-to-the-holocaust. Accessed on 01/27/2025.
Terry Ebaugh 