hardcover, 288 pages
Published June 2, 2020 by Riverhead Books.
Short, fast read in which the author discusses many examples of how Trump's autocratic and fascistic impulses played out in his actions & words as well as the toadies around him. You heard about these things when he did them; Gessen discusses them in the context of the would-be autocrat's intent & desired effects.
While rehashing the horrors of the last four years, Masha Gessen urges readers to realize that Trump's regime cannot be described by the language of liberal democracy, but by Bálint Magyar's new vocabulary for post-soviet states. Without the language, we will not see the reality:
Mafia State: a state system where the government is tied with organized crime to the degree when government officials, the police, and/or military became a part of the criminal enterprise.
Kakistocracy: government run by the worst, least qualified, and/or most unscrupulous citizens
Totalitarian Ideology: An entirely encapsulated ideology; it’s impervious to any input from outside reality.
Gessen's reframing of the last four years into the realities of post-soviet states is more painful than remaining ignorant, but also more useful and the key to fighting authoritarianism. You should read Surviving Autocracy.
