The fascist truth about Judge Hannah Dugan's arrest
Don't be intimidated by this well-known tactic of fascists
TGIF TAT readers,
Today, I used my standard tactic when confronted by fascists and their cruel, unconstitutional tactics to intimidate us, the American people. I had a beer for lunch, did a little exercise and now, it is time to help you folks, better understand the arrest of Judge, Hannah Dugan.
Introduction
First and foremost, it is easy to predict what Trump and his MAGA Republican Party will do next. All that we need to know is that everything we see can be traced back to Russia, Nazi Germany, China and other dictatorial nations’ playbooks. Fascists and related authoritarian formats, largely depend on standard tactics and mostly, at critical times in their ascendency or devolution. In other words, these types of despots are not terribly clever nor imaginative. Like terrorist movements, it is understood in my profession, that there are lifecycles to all forms of dictatorial governments and extremist movements.
Typically, new authoritarians simply repeat what their predecessors have already perfected. Every one of these tactics though, are temporary and unsustainable, especially against people without a history of being subjugated by oppression. The US has no collective memory of extended oppression and the gene of resistance, is deeply embedded in the psyche of most of us, especially those of us who read history and have experience dealing with these overfunded and immoral degenerates.
As most regular readers know, I spent most of my military career in CT/ counterterrorism, operationally and research wise. There is no difference between today’s GOP and governments like Iran, Afghanistan and some others. Sure, textbook definitions may vary slightly, but truth is in what people and entities do, not what they say. Today’s GOP is a cross between Putin’s far-right terrorist state and the theocratic Taliban government of Afghanistan, where I spent much of my career.
Judge Hannah Dugan/ Background
Judge Dugan has been in service to the greater good for much of her adult life working for legal aid organizations and even serving as a director for Catholic Charities. A Wikipedia page devoted to her, will support this statement. There is no public record that she is rogue, unethical, or a violator of our constitutionally grounded law. On the other hand, Kash Patel, Pam Bondi, the entire administration and Republican congress, daily violate all of our constitutionally guaranteed rights. They are attempting to make an example of her for their own agenda, by charging her with an unsubstantiated case, with minor evidence. They are also making an example of her on a Friday, to intimidate the rest of us into submission.
Attorney General Pam Bondi promised on Friday prosecution for judiciary members who cross the Trump administration. - "Deranged" Milwaukee judge's arrest a warning to others, Bondi says - Axios - Jason Lalljee - 04/ 25/ 2025
The charges made by the FBI, who really has a lot of better things to do, are weak by any legal standard. Time will tell whether or not there are merits to the government’s case, beyond what they have expressed today at her arrest at court in Wisconsin. The primary accusers, FBI director Kash Patel and AG Pam Bondi, are both known conspiracy theorists deeply supportive of Trump and the GOP’s false narratives and outright lies. Both have also been extensively investigated for their own official actions, especially regarding ethics violations in their former official, taxpayer funded, government duties.
A short lesson on authoritarianism
Abstract This article highlights three main problems with current conceptualizations of authoritarianism: they constitute a negative or residual category, focus excessively on elections and assume that authoritarianism is necessarily a state-level phenomenon. Such ‘regime classifications’ cannot help us comment intelligently on public concerns that politicians like President Rodrigo Duterte, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Prime Minister Viktor Orban or President Donald Trump are essentially ‘authoritarian’ leaders. This article proposes that, in order to provide political scientists with better tools to distinguish between contemporary threats to democracy and interpretations imbued by left-liberal prejudice, authoritarianism studies must be reoriented towards studying authoritarian as well as illiberal practices rather than the fairness of national elections alone. The article defines and illustrates such practices, which exist in authoritarian, democratic and transnational contexts. Comparative analysis of authoritarian and illiberal practices will help us understand conditions in which they thrive and how they are best countered. - What authoritarianism is … and is not:∗ a practice perspective - Oxford Academic/ International Affairs - Oxford University - Marlies Glasius - International Affairs, Volume 94, Issue 3, May 2018, Pages 515–533,
Authoritarian tactics
Daily, all America and the world watches the current administration, violate our constitutionally guaranteed, civil rights. In fact, their agenda and previous actions include flagrantly unconstitutional actions. In short and as I’ve written an entire series of essays about, we are currently experiencing a coup, fully intending to overthrow our constitutional republic. The general category of labels like fascist, despot, dictator, tyrant, totalitarian etc. most easily can be understood as “authoritarian.” For the purpose of today’s essay, I will further just use authoritarian, although in the national security world, these have some very specific definitions. To those of us on the receiving end of Trump and the GOP’s authoritarian tactics, unconstitutional authoritarianism works just fine.
According to the Digital Commons, Social Change Library, authoritarian is defined as:
A concerted effort by a network of organizations and institutions (governmental, legal, educational, media, business, military police, religious and cultural institutions, etc.) to legitimize an oppressive system by providing it legal and political support, material resources (i.e. money, communication networks), and human resources (people, skills) to maintain control.
A system that is willing to engage in a spectrum of undemocratic practice from corruption and sowing lies and conspiracy theories, to using fear and violence in order to manipulate, divide people, and maintain power.
The misuse of the power of the state to advance the personal and/or partisan desires of the head of state or a ruling clique (e.g., persecuting political opponents, subverting honest elections).
Often emerges “legally”, by democratically elected leaders who subvert democratic norms and institutions to stay in power.
A slow and quiet advance over a period of years where small battles weaken the foundations of democracy, which can culminate in a period of rapid democratic losses and decline.
Also, from the Digital Commons folks, come the attributes and the elements of Authoritarianism. For the sake of clarity, what they call elements also easily describe tactics.
What are the Core Attributes of Authoritarianism?
Rejecting democratic rules of game.
Denying the legitimacy of opponents.
Tolerating or encouraging political violence.
Curtailing the civil liberties of opponents.
What are the Top 10 Elements of the Authoritarian Playbook?
Divide and rule: Foment mistrust and fear in the population.
Spread lies and conspiracies: Undermine the public’s belief in truth.
Destroy checks and balances: Quietly use legal or pseudo-legal rationales to gut institutions, weaken opposition, and/or declare national emergencies to seize unconstitutional powers.
Demonize opponents and independent media: Undermine the public’s trust in those actors and institutions that hold the state accountable.
Undermine civil and political rights for the unaligned: Actively suppress free speech, the right to assembly and protest and the rights of women and minority groups.
Blame minorities, immigrants, and “outsiders” for a country’s problems: Exploit national humiliation while promising to restore national glory.
Reward loyalists and punish defectors: Make in-group members fearful to voice dissension.
Encourage or condone violence to advance political goals: Dehumanize opposition and/or out-groups to justify violence against them.
Organize mass rallies to keep supporters mobilized against made-up threats: Use fearmongering and hate speech to consolidate in-group identity and solidarity.
Make people feel like they are powerless to change things: Solutions will only come from the top.
What Kash Patel’s FBI did this morning, with the full support of AG Pam Bondi and the DOJ, easily falls into multiple of the ten tactics above. Those tactics, are easily understood as intimidation, intended to dissuade honest citizens from responding angrily and effectively, in large numbers. This is the whole point of the GOP administration’s refusal to honor a 9-0 Supreme Court ruling regarding Kilmar Abrego Garcia and other anti-administration rulings.
When the courts are no longer a co-equal branch of government, we are by default, living in an authoritarian state. Yes, the MAGA Republican Party, with support from a handful of elite oligarchs, Trump and of course Putin, is willfully and actively participating in this coup.
Today, Judge Dugan, became a statistic in the exponentially growing list of authoritarian acts, intended to promote the unconstitutional and grotesquely un-American, Project 2025 agenda. P25 is actually just the “180-day transition playbook” of the administration. It gets worse from there and becomes what I have termed, The four horsemen of the MAGA Apocalypse: Autocracy, Oligarchy, Christian Nationalism and Violence.
In simple terms, Judge Dugan was what we call in the military, a “target of opportunity.” In other words, she provided a miniscule pretext for this high, unnecessary drama, arrest. She’s not a Republican and has a long history of looking out for the individual civil rights of the unhealthy and impoverished, without a voice. She also has to date, no controversial judgements to be found in public media sources.
Today being Friday also plays a role. Fridays have long been a time when governments, not just the US have pulled stunts like this. Everyone is exhausted of the dishonest GOP drama, tired after a work week and looking forward to weekend, Spring activities and… to protest at one of the now weekly, 50501 protests against fascism, building momentum nationally. It is believed that these factors will lessen the impact of something so heinous. The bottom-line here is that this high-drama arrest, is intended to intimidate those wishing to stand up against the GOP’s autocratic thuggism, with limited opposition. It also is likely a diversion from this week’s seemingly endless losses and activities, like the ever-expanding Hegseth circus.
Here’s a little more professional insight… authoritarians tend to use these types of tactics in the opening days of their coup but also, as I believe true in this case, when resistance to their coup is increasing. The intimidation is intended to keep people out of the streets and the courts that are contrary to their aberrant and immoral MAGA GOP ideology.
The problem with Trump, Republican leadership and their big-checkbook oligarchs, is that they have been listening to Putin for far too long. Now, none of them understand American identity, or are so subservient to the party, that they consciously are subservient to the fascists. In fact, the more afraid that they become, the strong true patriots become. History is replete with examples of authoritarian nations failing from such attempts to push the wrong people too far.
Americans do not back down when our republic is at stake. It’s quite literally in our DNA. The Soviets, Putin, Russia and their allies, never understood Americans. This is why since the 1940s, Soviet and then Russian influence operations have focused on social division within the US populace’s social, ethnic, religious and racial divisions. Divide and conquer is quite likely, one of the very oldest strategies in the book.
As noted earlier, when authoritarians use such tactics, it is often because they are beginning to fail. Today’s desperate act is actually a minor “Hail Mary.” Daily, our courts, citizens, corporations, states etc. are handing the Trumpist GOP losses. This coup is not going to plan for them, and they are so out of touch with America, they don’t yet see their vulnerability. This is an excellent opportunity to seize the initiative and exploit their growing weakness. Like Napolean is quoted:
The GOP’s targeting of a white female, non-republican loyalist judge, also denotes that they are wielding their un-American and patently racist/ misogynist DEI campaign, as a bludgeon against Judge Dugan and all other opposition. Yes, if you picked up on the fact that this targeting, also represents that part of Trump and the GOP’s white female base, is slipping away from their grip, you are right.
The Trumpsters love their slogan, “promises made, promises kept” but American women aren’t buying this lie any longer. Prices across the board are high and growing daily due to Trump’s fully ignorant tariff war and his oligarch’s price-gouging. That the GOP has had to resort to authoritarian tactics to sell their immigration issues, isn’t lost on mothers, who have long stood up alongside dads, for their children when mistreated for being “different.” They are coming to understand that Putin is trying to destroy America and that the GOP administration has allied us with him, while selling out our allies.
At risk of oversimplifying the situation, I will sum up by saying that if honest Americans, regardless of political beliefs do not stand up collectively for our moral judges, we are loudly telling the Trump GOP that we will not stand up for ourselves. Resisting this authoritarian regime called the GOP is the duty of all truly patriotic citizens, not any specific party or movement. No matter what our personal interests are regarding US law, policy and behavior, the primary mission is to first save our republic and then work with the time and energy left over, for your personal special interests. If we don’t save the republic, no other special interest will matter.
Earlier this week I wrote a constructive critique of the 50501 movement, which I support but with one critical requirement. My primary fault with the movement at this phase, is that they are allowing special interests a primary role, not a supportive role. Not one special interest can save our republic. Only securing our constitution, with three, co-equal branches of government and operating within constitutional guardrails matter at the moment. If you need to, repeat that last sentence until it is your mantra, because that is what matters and most importantly, what makes us patriotic Americans.
The Republican Party’s assault on Judge Dugan today, was a full-frontal assault on our republic and each and every one of us. As that last weekend, we celebrated the beginning of our War for Independence, it would appear that this week, we must remain the modern version of Minutemen and women, rushing into the breach to keep our nation free of oppression. I have a deep faith in all of you, that you be shoulder to shoulder with me.
My very best for your weekend and may it be filled with the liberty our founders gifted us.
Paul