Joan is joined by David Corn, Mother Jones’ Washington bureau chief, MSNBC analyst, and author. They discussed Corn's "Our Land" newsletter posts on authoritarianism and history. He highlighted historical examples like Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, and Trump's executive order, "Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History." Corn noted the fear among politicians like Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and the potential for legal retaliation by the Trump administration against the president's critics, including Corn himself.

"I do think if you fear them, they win," Corn told WCPT. "I mean, the first thing that an authoritarian or that a bully does is try to scare you. They'd rather not throw a punch, because sometimes they can be hit back. Sometimes that punch might not land. Trump's a bully, and he rather would overcome and win with bluster first and with threats. That's not to say that he wouldn't try afterwards to make good on those threats, and he certainly is doing that in certain areas. But I think you have to just, at least initially, resist the urge to be scared of these people. That doesn't mean you shouldn't be prudent and take precautions, but I guess that means [to] not sort of let the fear dominate your decision making or determine your decision making."

Corn also discussed the impact of public protests and the vulnerability of Republican lawmakers who won their districts with narrow margins.

(Photo credit: Mother Jones)

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

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