Trump and Hitler: Peas in a Pod? Hardly

Oh, oh, oh. I know how popular this comparison is. I can sort of understand the itch Trump haters feel to say he is Hitler incarnate. After all, if you hate someone to the extent these people hate Trump, why not compare him to the worst of the worst? (Although ya gotta give credit where it is due, Hitler was a hell of a mover and shaker.)

It’s one thing to compare personalities, another to compare ideologies and political policies. Maybe Hitler and Trump are similar in certain odd ways, but even that is a stretch for me. Ideologies and political policies? More on that in a minute.

As much as people like to think that Trump is a sociopath or psychopath, there really isn’t any diagnosable evidence for this. I would not argue with anyone who wants to peg him with the NPD label (Narcissistic Personality Disorder)—that one he may have to own. I’m not sure if I could say the same for Hitler. Hitler certainly may have been a sociopath and/or psychopath, and possibly a narcissist to boot (along with a few other unsavoury diagnoses).

Narcissists are a dime a dozen in the world leader arena. I doubt if the US has ever had a president who did not sport some pretty serious narcissistic traits. But the NPD clinical disorder itself? Hard to say. In fact, no one who has not seen Trump as a psychotherapy patient has any business diagnosing him. Believe me, there are quite a few subtleties that come about when you sit face-to-face with a patient for a long period of time. A professional psychologist cannot realistically, nor ethically, make any sort of definitive diagnosis without having done that. With anyone.

Back to the idea that all world leaders are narcissists. Well, it seems that having a bit of narcissism can work in your favour when confronting dozens of power-hungry world leaders. Dog eat dog, ya know. Narcissist eat narcissist. And in certain special situations, even being a bit of a “sociopath” (someone who persistently has difficulty engaging appropriately with social norms) would come in handy.

Don’t get your knickers in a wad with me saying that. I’ve done a lot of study in psychology, and a lot of fieldwork as well, and these diagnoses are difficult to nail down. It isn’t like identifying a broken bone or a skin rash, psychology is slippery, and any diagnosis has a very wide range of symptoms and many degrees of behaviour and various levels of pathology. I am not making a blanket statement that it is good to have a sociopathic president, but a president has to be tough and thick skinned, and sometimes even a bit unfeeling, to be good as his/her job. He or she should always be decent, however, and always empathic to his or her constituents. Needless to say, a full fledged by the book sociopath is not a good thing, any way you look at it.

Back to Hitler and Trump. Hitler was a serious ideologue, Trump is not. Hitler had his own twisted idea of good and evil. Trump does not. Hitler had a dogmatic belief system and worldview with little, if any, room for wiggling. Trump does not. Everyone who hates Trump wants to think he has all of these Hitleresque traits. But he doesn’t. Trump’s ideology is Trump. And by extension, his ideology includes the “thing” Trump has decided symbolizes him. This used to be his buildings, his casinos, his reality TV shows, and his money. Now it is the United States of America. And, believe it or not, this includes the American people and a consideration for their well-being. Yes, a “well-being” he defines, but at least half of the people in the US define it the same way.

People can certainly opt to not have this sort of fellow as their president. But over half of Americans did. If you want to judge Trump, and create an assessment of his appropriateness as the leader of the free world, fine. Just don’t compare him to Hitler.

So how else are these two guys similar and different?

Here is a point-by-point presentation:

Similarities

Political Messaging and Populism

• Rhetoric Against Elites: Both Trump and Hitler have positioned themselves as champions of the "common people" against perceived corrupt elites. Hitler used this narrative to appeal to Germans who felt betrayed after World War I, while Trump leveraged it to attract voters frustrated with Washington's establishment politics.

• Nationalism: Both emphasized strong nationalist themes. Hitler's "Lebensraum" and glorification of Aryan supremacy were extreme manifestations of nationalism, while Trump promoted "America First," focusing on U.S. sovereignty and prioritizing national interests.

Use of Media and Propaganda

• Both leaders effectively used media to connect with their audiences. Hitler, through Joseph Goebbels, mastered propaganda with rallies and speeches that captivated millions. Trump has relied heavily on social media platforms, particularly Twitter, to galvanize support and directly communicate with his base.

Scapegoating

• Both engaged in scapegoating to unify their supporters and consolidate power. Hitler targeted Jews, communists, and other minority groups, framing them as threats to Germany's prosperity. Trump frequently targeted immigrants (particularly from Mexico), Muslims, and China as contributing to economic and social issues in the U.S.

Differences

Historical Context and Ideology

• Economic Crisis vs. Relative Stability: Hitler rose to power during Germany's Weimar Republic era, a time of hyperinflation, economic collapse, and defeat after World War I. Trump's rise occurred during a period of relative U.S. economic stability, though amid growing political polarization.

• Totalitarianism vs. Democratic Framework: Hitler dismantled democratic institutions to establish a totalitarian regime where dissent was brutally suppressed. Trump operated within a democratic system where checks and balances, including judicial rulings and legislative opposition, constrained his actions.

• Genocide and Ideological Extremes: Hitler's ideology included racial purity and led to the Holocaust, a genocide that resulted in the deaths of six million Jews and millions of others. Trump's policies, though controversial, do not reflect genocidal or expansionist objectives.

(thanks to my research assistant for this list)

And get this, a meme I recently ran across shows how out to lunch people are regarding their assumption that Trump is the New World Hitler.

Trump won because the majority of Americans are ignorant enough to choose a corrupt, unhinged, felon born with a silver spoon in his nasty mouth, over a woman of color. That’s it. Nothing else mattered to them. It’s disgusting, shameful, and clear as day.

I won’t say who said this—some actress I believe. But it is such a clear presentation of brainwashing it isn’t funny. If many Trump haters actually believe this, then we are in pretty serious trouble.

So, according to her, the only reason people didn’t vote for Kamala was because she was a “woman of colour.” No consideration of the fact she supported a criminal war in Europe and an equally, if not a more, criminal war in the Middle East. No consideration that she advocated the mutilation of children to change their sex to the one they imagined. No consideration that she had no problem with mass immigration of unvetted criminals into the US. No consideration that she promoted censoring of free speech. Just these four considerations alone are enough of a reason, other than her being a “woman of colour,” to not vote for her. (Now, don’t go nitpicking my “considerations” here, I know there is room for interpretation, but essentially, I am correct regarding her position on these issues.)

I have to admit I do not find Trump a likeable person. I despised him during his last run as president (I was pretty ignorant of a lot of things back then). I am not even convinced he is not part of the Deep State himself and is just the choice of the agenda to be the US puppet in the New World Order (sorry to all of my Shrew Views Trump supporters). But any dislike I have or had of him is not because he is the rebirth of Der Führer.

I like his team, but they could all be in on it as well. So, the jury is still out for me. However, I absolutely detest all this garbage being thrown about regarding him being a reincarnation of Hitler, that he is a psychopath hell-bent on genocide (particularly of women, gays, and people of colour). Sorry to any of my leftist friends out there, I just don’t buy it.

Back to the peas in a pod idea, while Trump and Hitler do share some superficial similarities in terms of rhetoric and populist appeal, their ideologies, leadership styles, and historical contexts diverge greatly. For one thing, Hitler’s regime was defined by totalitarianism, genocide, and a destructive global war, while Trump’s leadership, though polarizing, adheres to democratic norms and focuses on nationalist and economic policies. Comparing the two is like comparing apples and oranges, or more like comparing Wiener Schnitzel and a Big Mac. Pointless at best, dangerous at worst.

So if you insist on dragging Trump into the mud as the worst president the US has ever put into office, don’t focus on his hair, his ugly lips, his unhealthy body, or even his psychological state. Focus on his policies, and his political direction. And definitely leave out this strange comparison to Adolf Hitler.

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