Trump says he is ‘opposite of a Nazi’

Former President Trump at a Monday rally rejected the label used by Vice President Harris and some of his former aides that he is a fascist, describing himself as “the opposite of a Nazi.”

“You know, years ago, my father — I had a great father, tough guy — he used to always say, ‘Never use the word Nazi. Never use that word.’ And he’d say, ‘Never use the word Hitler. Don’t use that word,'” Trump said.

“And yet they use that word freely. Both words. They say, ‘He’s Hitler,’ and then they say, ‘He’s a Nazi,'” the former president continued. “I’m not a Nazi. I’m the opposite of a Nazi.”

Trump’s remarks were some of his most direct to date taking on the argument from his opponents that he is an authoritarian who echoes the dictators of World War II.

The GOP presidential nominee’s critics have increasingly been willing to say the former president meets the definition of a fascist. Mark Milley, the former chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told veteran journalist Bob Woodward that Trump is a “fascist to the core.”

Former chief of staff John Kelly also recently told The New York Times the former president met the definition of a fascist, and he recalled the former president expressing admiration for Adolf Hitler. 

Harris has seized on Kelly’s comments and has said she agrees Trump is a fascist.

Trump earlier in the campaign said some immigrants entering the country were “poisoning the blood” of the nation, comments that drew comparisons to Nazi Germany.

The rhetoric has drawn blowback from some Republicans, who argued it has gone too far during an election where Trump has been the target of two assassination attempts.

But, Trump himself has turned the tables on his Democratic rival, describing Harris as a fascist and a Marxist.