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Vague, abusive, and indiscriminate use of language is common in political discourse, and currently is more ubiquitous than ever. In recent decades, one of the most popular terms of political abuse has been “fascist.” The practice of misusing this word quickly reached heights of hysteria during the presidential candidacy of Donald Trump in 2016. Its use has become so indiscriminate that some complain the word has lost any precise meaning save that of disapproval.
“Fascist” is particularly useful as a multipurpose pejorative because the term lacks any clear inherent meaning, however broad, as do other common words such as “liberal,” “conservative,” or “socialist.” The term was initially derived from the