Seven signs Trump is going 'full Arab dictator'
1. Family affairs: Trump repeatedly brushed off accusations of potential conflicts of interest if he took office by entrusting his children to take over the empire. Then he appointed Eric, Ivanka and his son-in-law Jared Kushner to the transition team, with Kushner continuing to serve as his special adviser at the White House. But in the Middle East, of course, mixing family and politics is not unusual.
2. Media crackdown: Just like Sisi's rise to power came alongside a crackdown on press freedom, Trump has responded to unfriendly coverage by criticising outlets such as The New York Times, CNN and NBC as "dead" or "losing credibility". After his victory, he broke protocol and refused to go out with his press pool -
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2017" style="color:#fff;" class="twitter-post-link" target="_blank">Twitter Post
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3. Military peacocking: According to several sources involved in his inaugural preparations, Trump's inuguration team floated the idea of marking his first day as commander-in-chief with an unusual display of heavy military equipment including tanks and missile launchers. "It's very Red Square," said Stephen Kerrigan, who held top positions in Obama's first and second presidential inaugural committees.
4. Fascist subtext: Trump's election campaign ran on the theme that America was in a bad place, convincing the electorate that America was under threat of immigrants, Muslims and terrorists - and he was the person to fix it. His remarks at the RNC in July didn't go unnoticed.
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) July 22, 2016" style="color:#fff;" class="twitter-post-link" target="_blank">Twitter Post
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Trump's gilted and garish pad looks like an Arab dictator's fantasy. |
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