White Nationalist Nick Fuentes Says Trump’s Arrest ‘Is Why You Need Fascism’

It is obvious that Nick Fuentes is a racist, misogynistic, antisemitic, homophobic Christian nationalist who hates this country, but what is sometimes less apparent is the fact that the foundation of all these positions is Fuentes’ fervent authoritarianism.

Fuentes, the founder of the white nationalist America First youth movement, has made no secret of his love for murderous dictators and his desire to see a dictatorship imposed on this nation, preferably with his one-time dinner companion, former President Donald Trump, at the helm.

As such, Fuentes was predictably outraged that Trump was arrested Tuesday on charges of falsifying business records, which prosecutors say he did to deceive the public ahead of the 2016 election and cover up hush money payments made to women with whom he allegedly had extramarital affairs. Fuentes used his livestream Tuesday to assert that as the once elected “sovereign of America,” Trump is entitled to permanent immunity from prosecution for nearly all crimes, including murder.

“On the question about charging Trump and him being above the law or something, actually, yes, there is a different consideration for a former head of state,” Fuentes said. “Absolutely.”

“The president acts in the stead of the entire nation on the world stage,” he continued. “The president acts on our behalf. The president, being delegated authority by the Constitution, is standing in as the sovereign of America. The idea that the sovereign of America would be put in jail or dragged before a court for a low-level misdemeanor or even a felony is a joke.”

“The only thing that a president should ever be charged for—ever—is things like corruption, treason, murder,” Fuentes declared. “And I would even say maybe not even murder. The only crimes a president should be charged for are crimes against the country because at that point you’ve ascended to a different level.”

“Once you become the president, you never unbecome president,” Fuentes insisted. “Once you capture 25 percent of the population voting for you—60 million, 75 million votes—and then you go out and represent the American nation to the world and domestically, you then are entitled to live in esteem for the rest of your life.”

Fuentes said the fact that Trump is being prosecuted while so many other crimes go unpunished is why this nation needs fascism.

“This is why you need fascism,” he said. “I don’t call myself a fascist, but that’s fundamentally what this is about.”

Of course, Fuentes’ belief that the “sovereign of America” is entitled to permanent immunity from prosecution only seems to apply to Trump, as just last month he was fuming that former President Barack Obama should have been dragged “by his nappy hair … through the courts.”

“It should have been Hillary Clinton and Obama in an orange jumpsuit and a paddy wagon,” Fuentes said then. “It should have been brutal and unforgiving and unrelenting and intense and unstoppable.”

We need your help. Every day, Right Wing Watch exposes extremism to help the public, activists, and journalists understand the strategies and tactics of anti-democratic forces—and respond to an increasingly aggressive and authoritarian far-right movement. The threat is growing, but our resources are not. Any size contribution—or a small monthly donation—will help us continue our work and become more effective at disrupting the ideologies, people, and organizations that threaten our freedom and democracy. Please make an investment in Right Wing Watch’s defense of the values we share.