Google “Donald Trump” and “fascism,” and you’ll find countless headlines, from both left-wing and mainstream outlets, twisting the term beyond recognition.
Once used to describe totalitarian regimes responsible for genocide and war, “fascism” has become a lazy insult hurled by liberal commentators, academics, and media elites against Republicans.
If these legacy institutions care at all about the preservation of their credibility, the aims of democracy, and decency, they should speak out about the language being used by the left today. Clearly denouncing the recent messages from Democrat Jay Jones would be a good place to start.
Virginia Democrat attorney general candidate Jay Jones speaks to an audience at a bus tour stop for Democrat gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger in Fairfax, Virginia, on June 26, 2025. (Maxine Wallace/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
We used to say, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Political rhetoric today has devolved from words to weapons.
Calling political opponents “fascists” isn’t clever—it’s dangerous. It encourages hostility, dehumanizes conservatives, and gives the left a moral license to attack those with different beliefs. I’ve seen it firsthand as a husband, father, and political operative watching the climate of hatred grow darker.
The term “fascist” and other liberal triggers have led to significant political violence, including the murder of a conservative icon and a Fortune 500 CEO and assassination attempts on a Republican president and a Republican member of Congress.
Public disagreement and spirited debate are hallmarks of democracy. But branding people “fascists” for their beliefs crosses a line. When the media or academia excuse such language, they become complicit in the culture of violence it breeds.
A protester holds an anti-Trump sign during a rally in St. Paul, Minnesota, on March 6, 2022. (Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
The word “fascist” carries enormous weight. Most people who use it today couldn’t provide its dictionary definition; it’s become one of the most dangerously misunderstood and misused words in America. Those who use it simply crave the outrage and validation it provokes on social media. What began as a political insult has evolved into a rallying cry for radical liberal activists who justify harassment, threats, and ultimately, violence.
This isn’t theoretical. When I was a teenager, my fellow teenage Republicans were labeled “fascists” by Amnesty International students without consequence. Decades later, outside a restaurant on Capitol Hill, protestors screamed the same slur through bullhorns while police stood by. The setting had changed, but the hatred had not.
Democrats have taken the rhetoric further, comparing Republicans to Hitler or calling them fascists from national platforms.
A leftwing protestor holds a sign outside a Tesla showroom in Manhattan on March 8, 2025. (Michael Nigro/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Last year, during a town hall on CNN, then-Vice President Kamala Harris referred to her political opponent, Donald Trump, as a fascist. The same administration’s White House press secretary also called Trump a fascist.
“Fascist” made its way back into the political debate this year in the Virginia Attorney General’s race. In leaked text messages, Democrat candidate Jay Jones fantasized about putting “two bullets” in the head of his political opponent and justified the thought because his opponent is “breeding little fascists.”
The liberals who engage in this rhetoric know what they are doing. When California Gov. Gavin Newsom calls a White House staffer a fascist, he knows exactly what he is doing. It’s a signal to supporters that conservatives are not just wrong but evil; and, once again, violence becomes easier to rationalize.
An anti-Trump protester holds a placard during the rally outside the Pennsylvania Capitol during the “No Kings Day” protest on February 17, 2025. (Paul Weaver/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Let me be crystal clear: there is nothing fascist about being a Republican. In fact, the most authoritarian policies in my political lifetime came from Democrats and their COVID-era shutdowns — from Democrat Gavin Newsom arresting people for walking on the beach to Kansas Democrat Gov. Laura Kelly closing churches on Easter.
The media and other bastions of liberal elitism, such as academia, must be willing to publicly condemn Democrat discord — whether as minor as Gavin Newsom’s tweet or as severe as Virginia Democrat attorney general candidate Jay Jones’ text messages repeatedly fantasizing about putting bullets in the heads of his political opponents and their “fascist” children.
The media and so-called non-partisan academics must not only hold Democrats like Jay Jones accountable when they promote violence, but they also must hold leftists accountable when they celebrate murderers like Luigi Mangione.
Yes, carnival barking creates clicks and ad revenue. However, we have evolved to an era of yellow journalism and are at the brink of ending bipartisanship for generations to come.
It’s time for Democrats and the media to show restraint, reject the politics of demonization, and restore respect for genuine debate. America is better than this—and it starts with Democrats having the courage to tell Jay Jones to drop out of the race and retiring “fascist” from the liberal lexicon once and for all.
Adam Piper is the executive director of the Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA).
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