Latest news with #Hitleresque
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump's Top D.C. Prosecutor Apologizes for Lauding Nazi Sympathizer as ‘Extraordinary Man'
Ed Martin, Donald Trump's top prosecutor in Washington, D.C., claimed he had no idea that a Jan. 6 defendant, whom he once praised as 'an extraordinary man,' was a known Nazi sympathizer and white supremacist. It is bullshit, not only because Hale-Cusanelli extremist history is both public and well documented, but because Hale and Martin have directly interacted in the past. Timothy Hale-Cusanelli, a former Army reservist and Navy security guard, gained notoriety as a Jan. 6 defendant convicted on charges related to the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. While the charges against Hale-Cusanelli were non-violent, his public persona and social media presence were littered with racist and extremist statements and views. In one now notorious selfie, Hale-Cusanelli sports a Hitleresque mustache with a hand to his chest in the first motion of a Nazi salute. According to court documents, former Navy service members who spoke to investigators said that Hale-Cusanelli had once said that 'Hitler should have finished the job,' and that 'babies born with any deformities or disabilities should be shot in the forehead.' In September, Martin described Hale-Cusanelli as an 'extraordinary man' and 'leader,' while presenting an award to him at an event at Trump's Bedminster golf club. In an interview with The Forward, Martin said that he was 'sorry' for his praise of Hale-Cusanelli. 'I denounce everything about what that guy said, everything about the way he talked, and all as I've now seen it,' Martin told The Forward. 'At the time, I didn't know it.' 'I certainly didn't know all the terrible things that he said and how he had acted. I think that's terrible, and I denounced it completely. I hate it. I hate that it happened,' he added. It's hard to see how Martin could have been unaware of Hale-Cusanelli's history, as he himself represented Jan. 6 defendants — and Hale-Cusanelli's case was one of the most prominent at a national level. The apology comes as Martin, currently Trump's interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, seeks Senate confirmation to lose the interim moniker and hold the role permanently. Senate Democrats have urged Republicans to hold a confirmation hearing — which is uncommon for U.S. attorney nominees — given Martin's track record so far. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who announced he was putting a hold on Martin's nomination, recently told Rolling Stone that when Democrats 'outlined all of the list of horribles that [Martin's] been engaged in, Republicans seem genuinely surprised.' 'While U.S. attorney nominees don't generally get much scrutiny, this one really needs to,' Schiff says. 'And if they end up confirming him anyway, we're going to make sure that they own him, that they're forced to wrap their arms around him as he's wrapped his arms around Nazi sympathizers.' As the interim U.S. attorney, Martin has spent his few months declaring himself a legal attack dog for the president. In February, Martin referred to himself and the prosecutors in his office as 'President Trumps' lawyers.' Martin has pledged to 'protect' staffers working for Elon Musk's so-called Department of Government Efficiency. On Thursday, Martin was featured in a Justice Department press release touting misdemeanor charges filed against a man accused of vandalizing Teslas in Washington. The press release quoted Martin as calling the Tesla Takedown movement — a nonviolent protest campaign — 'domestic terrorism.' Martin was previously an active figure in the 'Stop the Steal' movement, which boosted Trump's false claims about the 2020 election and sought to help him overturn the results. Schiff and Sen. Alex Padilla, California's other Democratic senator, recently said that 'Martin's record and deeply problematic conduct merit heightened scrutiny and more than justify the full [Judiciary] Committee questioning him under oath.' More from Rolling Stone Pam Bondi Stars in Trump's Made-for-TV Justice Department Trump Is Working to 'Drain' the D.C. Prosecutor's Office and Make It MAGA Trump's D.C. Prosecutor Didn't Sign Arrest Warrant for MAGA Lawmaker Accused of Assault Best of Rolling Stone The Useful Idiots New Guide to the Most Stoned Moments of the 2020 Presidential Campaign Anatomy of a Fake News Scandal The Radical Crusade of Mike Pence
The Hill
11-03-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Comparing Putin's military aggressions with Hitler's
Does Russian President Vladimir Putin understandably feel threatened by the growing number of former USSR countries that have become democracies and are trying to align with the West and its values? Or is he a dictator with a Hitleresque dream of expanding his power, influence and territory no matter how much money or how many Russian lives it costs? Your answer could indicate what you think about the recent push for a peace agreement. President Trump and Vice President Vance seem to embrace the first scenario, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrainians, most of Europe, many traditional U.S. conservatives and even most liberals hold the second. So, it's a good time to compare Hitler's military aggressions and broken treaties and promises with Putin's to see how similar they are. Hitler longed for the land, influence and power Germany once possessed. Similarly, Putin has been quoted saying, 'The breakup of the Soviet Union was the greatest geopolitical tragedy of the 20th century.' He may not want to recreate the USSR per se, but it's clear he wants most of the nearby countries directly or indirectly under his thumb — just as Belarus is. Hitler continued and expanded a major military buildup far exceeding what the country needed to defend itself. That raised alarms in the West. The same is true for Russia — and China. Russian military spending increased significantly before invading Crimea in 2014, reaching 5.4 percent of GDP by 2016. It dropped when Trump was first elected president but exploded again in 2021, just before Russia invaded Ukraine. Hitler worked to sway public opinion and political leaders in neighboring countries to create sympathy to the Nazi cause. That's how he was able to absorb Austria into Germany in March 1938. Putin appears to be doing the same thing. Several countries have complained that Russia is covertly backing pro-Russia propaganda and candidates. Hitler began his land grab by demanding the Sudetenland, which was part of Czechoslovakia, claiming he was just uniting historically German peoples. Germany, Italy, France and Great Britain met in Munich in September 1938 to resolve the issue. In an effort to avoid war, Britain and France pressured Czechoslovakia, which was excluded from the negotiations — sound familiar? — to hand over the Sudetenland. Likewise, Putin has claimed that Ukraine was always part of the true Russia, and he is just reclaiming that territory. Before leaving Munich, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and Hitler agreed to work for peace. Chamberlain returned to Great Britain claiming, 'I believe it is peace for our time.' But Hitler wasn't satisfied with the Sudetenland. He wanted all of Czechoslovakia and took it. Britain and France didn't respond. So, Hitler invaded Poland, which drew Great Britian and France into war. Winston Churchill had warned Chamberlain, 'You were given the choice between war and dishonour. You chose dishonour, and you will have war.' Churchill was right. Even as Hitler was moving his military closer to the other countries' borders, he denied he planned to attack, then he did exactly that. Again, like Hitler, Putin alleged his soldiers were participating in 'military exercises' in Belarus, just north of Kyiv. It looked suspiciously like he planned to attack. Putin denied it repeatedly and then attacked on Feb. 24. Having lived through several broken Putin promises, Zelensky, Ukrainians and Europeans believe Putin cannot be trusted — as Zelensky tried to explain to Trump and Vance. They didn't want to hear it. But even if a deal is reached, Putin is playing the long game. He knows Trump will be out in four years while Putin will be president for as long as he lives. He can wait till Trump leaves. In fact, since his initial Ukrainian offensive failed — a Hitler-inspired 'blitzkrieg' intended to capture the capitol in a few days — Putin could use the intervening four Trump years to rebuild his military, resupply his weapons and replenish his finances from the sale of Russian oil and natural gas. And he will be a wiser and better prepared aggressor next time. Europeans lived through Hitler's aggressions, broken promises and land grabs. They can see the pattern and learned the lessons that led to World War II. When a dictator who longs for the land and power of his country's past begins growing his military and creating international turmoil, trouble is coming. No matter how many peace deals may be signed, they aren't worth the paper they're printed on if the dictator really wants land instead of peace and his opponents aren't willing to say no — and back it up. Just ask Churchill.
