Why are so many senior Republicans going along with this farce? Why are so many of their friends in the media enabling this assault on democracy? I& #39;ve tried twice to explain this phenomenon, once in my book, published last summer: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/621076/twilight-of-democracy-by-anne-applebaum/">https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/621...

Also in this article for the Atlantic, also published last summer: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/07/trumps-collaborators/612250/">https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/...

Both have been criticized, from the right, as overly harsh accounts of people who are "just doing their jobs." But as Trump& #39;s clownish attempt to steal the election continues, as other Republicans imitate him, I wonder if they didn& #39;t go far enough.

Some on the right felt that I didn& #39;t write enough about authoritarian tendencies on the left: there are a lot of "both-siders" out there who like balance. As the author of three books about Stalinism, I am certainly aware that Marxism can lead to dictatorship. But...

In modern times, no senior Democrat, the only viable "left-wing" US political party, has sought to cancel votes, or overthrow legitimate elections. Certainly that is not what happened in 2016. @dandrezner lays out the comparison here: https://twitter.com/dandrezner/status/1329872103361966080?s=20">https://twitter.com/dandrezne...

Republican officials are making emotional speeches about patriotism and the constitution in order to explain to their constituents why they must *certify the results of a legitimate election.* This speaks to the depth of the corruption inside the party https://twitter.com/KlasfeldReports/status/1330270545678626817?s=20">https://twitter.com/KlasfeldR...

And no, Republicans have not "always been authoritarian." Nor are all their voters, or even a majority, "authoritarian." But after 4 years of Trump, the partisans and the leadership have changed beyond recognition. They will remain a problem in US politics for years to come.