Donald Trump has now denied ever having read Adolf Hitler’s 1925 memoir-manifesto Mein Kampf as he faces a firestorm over his recent run of anti-immigrant comments, which have been likened to the Nazi leader’s infamous “blood and soil” rhetoric.

The former president returned to the campaign trail in Waterloo, Iowa, on Tuesday evening where he doubled down on his earlier inflammatory remarks.

“It’s crazy, what’s going on. They’re ruining our country. And it’s true. They are destroying the blood of our country. That’s what they’re doing. They are destroying our country,” he said.

“They don’t like it when I said that,” he added, before denying browsing Hitler’s book.

“And I never read Mein Kampf. They said, ‘Oh, Hitler said that’. In a much different way,” he said.

    • DarkGamer
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      492 years ago

      Additionally, Trump wanted US military generals to emulate generals of the third Reich and treat him like he was Hitler:

      It turned out that the generals had rules, standards, and expertise, not blind loyalty. The President’s loud complaint to John Kelly one day was typical: “You fucking generals, why can’t you be like the German generals?”
      “Which generals?” Kelly asked.
      “The German generals in World War II,” Trump responded.
      “You do know that they tried to kill Hitler three times and almost pulled it off?” Kelly said.
      But, of course, Trump did not know that. “No, no, no, they were totally loyal to him,” the President replied. In his version of history, the generals of the Third Reich had been completely subservient to Hitler; this was the model he wanted for his military. Kelly told Trump that there were no such American generals, but the President was determined to test the proposition.
      https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/08/15/inside-the-war-between-trump-and-his-generals

      Then there’s this:

      Donald Trump appears to take aspects of his German background seriously. John Walter works for the Trump Organization, and when he visits Donald in his office, Ivana told a friend, he clicks his heels and says, “Heil Hitler,” possibly as a family joke.

      Trump seems to aspire to be Hitler-like, and he even tried to take supreme dictatorial power through populism, lies and propaganda like Hitler did.

    • st3ph3n
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      182 years ago

      I am more shocked by the fact that that motherfucker reads books at all.

      • DarkGamer
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        92 years ago

        The fact that he reads so little yet keeps this book close to his bed is telling.

  • @zeppo@lemmy.world
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    402 years ago

    “They don’t like it when I said that” is one of an entire genre of Trump “they” statements. Goes along with “they like to use that word” and other claims about “they”.

  • SeaJ
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    92 years ago

    His mother, wife, and ex-few are immigrants. Although, I guess in the case of his mother, she did play a party in destroying the country.

  • @Wrench@lemmy.world
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    122 years ago

    Uh huh.

    The natural reaction if that were true would be to take a step back and re-evaluate your rhetoric and why you’re being compared to one of the most evil people in history.

    He’s read it cover to cover and loves it. That’s why the parallels are narrowing and becoming extremely clear. And why he’s not phased at the comparison.

    • modifier
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      2 years ago

      Believing Donald Trump has not read a book is easy, and this book is no exception. I have no problem believing he didn’t read it.

      Now Steven Miller on the other hand…

      • @Zaktor@sopuli.xyz
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        32 years ago

        Yup, this line probably wasn’t just stumbled upon randomly in his rotting brain, it was fed to him from one of his white nationalist speech goons. And it’s possible they too didn’t get it straight from Hitler but just read it on a neo-Nazi thought piece and found it compelling. Most white nationalists aren’t studying the foundational texts, but they all seem to know the same words.

      • @nightofmichelinstars@sopuli.xyz
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        2 years ago

        I believe Stephen Miller has it memorized and creeps into Trump’s bedroom through the window while he’s sleeping and whispers it into his ear, and has been doing this every night for 6 years. I can picture this clearly.

  • @jjjalljs@ttrpg.network
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    262 years ago

    Trump is a bad person and so is everyone who supports him.

    If you ever wondered what you would do if you found yourself in Germany in the 1930s, now you know.

    • @captainlezbian@lemmy.world
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      72 years ago

      Voting for trump doesn’t mean you want the president to commit atrocities against your fellow citizens, but it does mean that a politician promising to do so isn’t a deal breaker

  • @recapitated@lemmy.world
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    172 years ago

    You don’t need to read that book to know this stuff. He’s putting his ignorance of on full display. Ignorance of some of the most important AND MOST OBVIOUS and accessible historical periods …

    • @PilferJynx@lemmy.world
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      142 years ago

      It’s fascism 101. I wish people were more well read with history. The path these neo conservatives are going is going to end in suffering. What happens when your authoritarian leader rids themselves of their undesirables? They turn on you and make damn sure you can’t fight back and rebel just so they can stay in power. It’s always the same story.

    • @captainlezbian@lemmy.world
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      42 years ago

      True, but it is the thoughts of Hitler before he came to power, before the decisions that constitute the planning of the Holocaust were made, before he destroyed his country and killed millions of people in industrialized state sanctioned murder. And this presidential candidate sure sounds a lot like that book.

  • @kaffiene@lemmy.world
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    142 years ago

    I believe him. I don’t think he’s ever read a book at all. Plenty of morons manage to be racist all by themselves.

    • @_dev_null@lemmy.zxcvn.xyz
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      62 years ago

      I believe him, he’s too much of a dumbass to remember anything he’s read in a book.

      But the people that are feeding him the garbage he spews on the other hand…

  • @aseriesoftubes@lemmy.world
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    2 years ago

    “And I never read Mein Kampf. They said, ‘Oh, Hitler said that’. In a much different way,” he said.

    Note how he never says that what Hitler said or did was bad, but rather that he said what Hitler said in a different way.

    I long for the days when something like this would be absolutely, unequivocally disqualifying.

    • TechyDad
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      92 years ago

      Seriously. We went from “you spelled potato wrong or screamed slightly weird so no presidency for you” to “you’re quoting Hitler? Well, no big deal. It looks like you’re still the frontrunner for your party.”

    • @Zaktor@sopuli.xyz
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      162 years ago

      Sounds like he’s thinks the problem is plagiarism rather than similarity of content.

      • kase
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        22 years ago

        Exactly. “But but I changed the words around!!”

  • harrywrecker
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    222 years ago

    I very much believe he hasn’t read it. In fact I’d be surprised if anyone in his circle of cronies has read it. It’s so badly written.

    It’s a stream of consciousness completely devoid of structure. Sentences drag out for five lines and paragraphs go on for more than a page. There is often a change of subject along the way, forcing you to go back and re-read the garbage you couldn’t hold onto the first time around.

    It took me four weeks to get halfway through and I’m quite an avid reader.

    • Came here to say exactly this. He’s never read that book and he doesn’t truly grasp the reason the book was written or the history behind it. He has no clue as to the context.

      And it’s an awful book, like you said. Not just for what it advocates but it’s just so badly written. It’s fucking awful. You made it further than I did.

  • @macrocephalic@lemmy.world
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    452 years ago

    It’s easy to believe he’s never read Mein Kampf. It’s easy to believe he’s never read a book at all. He might have read his own book, maybe.

  • @chuckleslord@lemmy.world
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    32 years ago

    Hey, hi. Can we stop talking about the fucking peanut? He lied, he lies, he will lie. There, I’ve covered all news stories about the orange dreamsicle. You’re all caught up forever.

      • @chuckleslord@lemmy.world
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        12 years ago

        Sure. But this Mein Kampf story has happened before (unless I’m crazy, but this is like the third time around) and there’s nothing new here. Trump’s goal is attention. He will say anything for attention. Ignore this nothing story, we already know he’s a fascist. Anyone who doesn’t, probably isn’t going to. So, stop giving him your attention, unless it’s about his various trials or crimes. Stop watching so they stop making this shit. His base is such a small percent that no one, except grifters, sell to them. So, stop giving him attention.

        • Gumby
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          12 years ago

          Unfortunately, he has more support in the Republican primary than the other 5 candidates combined. Ignoring him won’t make him go away.

          • @chuckleslord@lemmy.world
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            12 years ago

            thud thud thud

            Yep. You got me. Better give him all your attention so that all the news sites know to cover everything he says and does, so that he takes over the nation’s attention again. Need to do it, he might win the election. Need to check if the fascist is a fascist, especially when everyone knows he’s a fascist. Look at all the social norms he’s stepping on, him, the fascist, is corroding the foundation of our society. The Fascist. Must keep giving him attention or otherwise he might win. /s

            I’m not saying ignore him. I’m saying give your attention to the things he DOESN’T want attention on. And definitely less than hanging on his every fucking word.