The Wannabe Fascists

A Guide to Understanding the Greatest Threat to Democracy, Revised and Expanded Edition
1. Auflage, Revised and Expanded 2026
ISBN: 978-0-520-43083-9
Verlag: University of California Press

Buch, Englisch, 288 Seiten, Trade Paperback, Format (B × H): 140 mm x 216 mm

“Finchelstein presents four criteria to evaluate where a country sits on the fascist spectrum: political violence, propaganda and misinformation, xenophobia, and dictatorship. It is, to put it mildly, disconcerting to see where the United States now finds itself on that spectrum.”—New York Review of Books"Stimulating and provocative."—International AffairsMeet today's almost fascists and learn the warning signs to intercept them on the road from populism to dictatorship.

With The Wannabe Fascists, historian Federico Finchelstein explains why Trumpism and similar movements represent a new political breed, the last outcome of the combined histories of fascism and populism: the wannabe fascists. These leaders are typically elected politicians who, unlike previous populists, embrace totalitarian lies, racism, and illegal means to destroy democracy from within.Drawing on decades of research, Finchelstein identifies  the “four pillars of fascism” and shows how wannabe fascists like Trump, Bolsonaro, and Modi embrace the first three pillars. This revised and expanded edition features a new preface and substantive updates throughout. Reckoning with the realities of a second Trump presidency, Finchelstein argues that the United States has moved closer to the tipping point he warned against. While maintaining that American democracy endures, he contends that the damage done to democratic institutions may take generations to repair.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Finchelstein, Federico

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Politische Systeme Totalitarismus & Diktaturen
• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Sozialphilosophie, Politische Philosophie
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Weltgeschichte

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Contents

Introduction: How Populism Is Turning into Wannabe Fascism

1. Violence and the Militarization of Politics

2. Fascist Lies and Propaganda

3. The Politics of Xenophobia

4. Dictatorship

Epilogue

Acknowledgments

Notes

Index

Über Autor(innen)

Federico Finchelstein is a world-renowned expert on fascism, populism, and dictatorship and is University in Exile Professor and Professor of History at the New School for Social Research and Eugene Lang College in New York City. His previous books include From Fascism to Populism in History and A Brief History of Fascist Lies.