Edward Szall, the racist, bigoted co-host of the Christian nationalist program "CrossTalk," is thrilled by reports that former President Donald Trump and his allies intend to impose an authoritarian regime on this nation should he return to the White House.
Excited that Trump has "been radicalized" by the political opposition and multiple legal cases he is currently facing, Szall declared that Trump "is not Mr. Nice Guy" and is, in fact, "Mr. You're Trying To Kill Me And My Family, I Will Enact Political Revenge Against My Political Enemies."
Right-wing commentator Joey Mannarino, who was a guest on Monday night's episode of "CrossTalk," was even more elated by Trump's unabashed authoritarianism.
"We want retribution against these people," Mannarino said. "Today, [Rep.] Jamie Raskin said, 'If Trump gets back in, America's going to be an illiberal democracy just like [Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor] Orbán has.' Please, thank you God, please bring me what Orbán has to America. I would love that. We need [Trump] to fight the way he always says he was going to fight and I think in 2024, if he manages to get back in, what does he have to lose at this point?"
The right, and in particular, the religious-right, has long admired Orbán, an authoritarian strongman who has systemically worked to dismantle the nation's press, academic, and judicial institutions while imposing a hard-right agenda in the name of "family values."
Sociologists and pollsters have documented that Christian nationalists are more likely than other Americans to support authoritarian leaders and believe that political violence may be necessary to “save” the country, which explain why Szall, Mannarino, and so many others on the right are rushing to embrace Trump's increasingly overt authoritarianism.
