It came as no surprise to many conservatives when the “fascist” label frequently used by the left to describe President Trump and his MAGA movement made its way onto bullets found alongside the weapon used to kill rising conservative star Charlie Kirk.
For the better part of a decade, Democrats, including top party leaders, have been wielding the fascist label as a weapon against Mr. Trump and his followers, including Mr. Kirk. Democrats have aligned conservative policies with Nazism and likened the president to Adolf Hitler.
Democrats and Trump critics ramped up use of the label after Mr. Trump won the White House in November. They haven’t backed down, even in the wake of Mr. Kirk’s brutal assassination by, prosecutors say, a man who told his family and romantic partner that he hated Mr. Kirk’s viewpoints and carved anti-fascist messaging onto the bullet casings.
Just days after Mr. Kirk’s assassination, American Federation of Teachers Union President Randi Weingarten released a book titled “Why Fascists Fear Teachers.” It accuses “the far right” of attacking and endangering public education.
The union represents 1.8 million public school educators and paraprofessionals.
Hillary Clinton is publicly promoting the book.
“From banning books to controlling curriculum, authoritarians go after public education because it’s a cornerstone of democracy,” she posted on X. “Randi’s new book is a critical read for this moment.”
An excerpt, published Tuesday in Rolling Stone magazine, was framed by a half-page photo of Mr. Trump under the headline “Why fascists hate critical thinking.”
Ms. Weingarten’s views echo years of messaging by the left that claim the policies of Mr. Trump and other conservatives are fascist, a term used to describe far-right authoritarianism that rejects democracy.
Former President Joseph R. Biden, former Vice President Kamala Harris, her 2024 running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, and other prominent Democrats have proclaimed that Mr. Trump and his policies are anti-democratic and fascist.
Mr. Biden, while president, said Mr. Trump, if elected to a second term, would act as a “dictator,” and his MAGA movement, he warned, is “a threat to the very soul of this country.”
Mr. Walz labeled Mr. Trump “a fascist to his core.”
The derogatory term followed Mr. Kirk to college campuses, where he debated students on liberal policies and ideology amid angry protests against his conservative viewpoints.
In addition to his status as a popular conservative influencer and college campus disrupter, Mr. Kirk co-founded Turning Point USA, an organization that raised money and campaigned heavily for Mr. Trump in 2024. The organization is credited with helping the president win by bolstering his support among young voters.
At the time of his assassination, Mr. Kirk was considered one of the president’s most important allies.
Tyler Robinson, 22, who is charged with fatally shooting Mr. Kirk while he debated students on the campus of Utah Valley University, was becoming consumed by left-wing ideology, his mother told authorities. He was also in a romantic relationship with his transgender roommate, a biological male who identified as a female.
Mr. Kirk was opposed to transgender ideology and policies supporting it.
“Trans is a mental delusion. Gender Affirming Care is child mutilation,” Mr. Kirk posted on X in 2023.
Mr. Robinson isn’t cooperating with the authorities.
Some indication about his motives came from family members who reported his embrace of left-wing ideology and a text chain with his boyfriend recovered by law enforcement in which he explained why he killed Mr. Kirk:
“I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out.”
He left additional clues on the bullet casings.
Mr. Robinson carved anti-fascist messages onto the bullets intended to kill Mr. Kirk: “Hey fascist, catch!” and lyrics from the song “Bella Ciao,” which is associated with the left-wing group antifa, an abbreviation for anti-fascist.
A third message referenced a “furries” meme, and a fourth message said, “If you read this, you are gay LMAO.”
Those trying to distance Mr. Robinson’s motive from political ideology point out that the antifa song is used in a popular video game, Far Cry 6, and said Mr. Robinson’s “Hey fascist,” message was a satirical reference to “Helldivers 2,” a video game that pits shooters and bombers against fascists.
In his final text exchanges with his boyfriend before surrendering to authorities, Mr. Robinson, who had been heavily immersed in online chats and video gaming, said the messages he carved onto the bullets were “mostly a big meme.”
After Mr. Kirk’s assassination, Republicans demanded that Democrats stop likening Republicans and their politics to Nazism and fascism.
“The rhetoric that led us to this moment, calling President Trump a fascist, calling him Hitler,” Sen. Katie Boyd Britt, Alabama Republican, said on Fox News. “You have news organizations and mainstream media celebrating that. Allowing those things to take place and be said on their networks. That is dangerous.”
