Al Gore Equates Trump Administration to Nazi Germany
The former vice president stated that the administration was "insisting on trying to create their own preferred version of reality."
TroibNews 
SAN FRANCISCO — Former Vice President Al Gore on Monday drew a comparison between President Donald Trump's administration and Nazi Germany, issuing grave warnings about the president's exercise of power in a speech focused on climate change.
Addressing attendees at the opening of San Francisco's Climate Week, Gore remarked that the Trump administration was "trying to create their own preferred version of reality" to further their sweeping agenda, reminiscent of Adolf Hitler's Nazi Party during the 1930s and ‘40s.
"I understand very well why it is wrong to compare Adolf Hitler's Third Reich to any other movement," he stated to an audience of around 150 climate advocates and policymakers at a science museum along San Francisco's waterfront. "It was uniquely evil, full stop. I get it. But there are important lessons from the history of that emergent evil."
His comments follow a string of sharp criticisms directed at the Trump administration from various prominent Democrats and former leaders in recent weeks.
Former President Barack Obama recently expressed his concerns about a federal government that threatens universities for protecting students exercising their right to free speech, warning that the values of the U.S. under Trump have deteriorated. Former Vice President Kamala Harris accused the Trump administration of engaging in unconstitutional actions that contribute to a "sense of fear." Additionally, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wrote in a New York Times guest essay that Trump is “squandering America’s strength and threatening our national security," part of a wave of critical responses from current Democratic officeholders adjusting their approaches to the White House.
In his address, Gore referenced the "moral autopsy on the Third Reich" conducted by German philosophers after World War II.
"It was [Jürgen] Habermas' mentor, Theodore Adorno, who wrote that the first step in that nation's descent into hell was, and I quote, 'the conversion of all questions of truth into questions of power,'" Gore noted. "He described how the Nazis, and I quote again, 'attacked the very heart of the distinction between true and false.' End quote. The Trump administration is insisting on trying to create their own preferred version of reality."
Gore’s remarks elicited no immediate response from White House officials when they were asked for comment.
The former vice president, whose 2006 documentary on global warming, "An Inconvenient Truth," won an Academy Award, also criticized Trump’s statements regarding climate change and energy technologies as part of his broader critique of the administration's dismantling of climate policies established by prior Democratic administrations.
"They say the climate crisis is a hoax invented by the Chinese to destroy American manufacturing," he declared. "They say coal is clean. They say wind turbines cause cancer. They say sea-level rise just creates more beachfront property."
He also referenced Martin Luther King, Jr. and the late Pope Francis in his 25-minute speech, primarily aimed at rallying the audience around the necessity for continued action on climate change.
"We've already seen, by the way, how populist authoritarian leaders have used migrants as scapegoats and have fanned the fires of xenophobia to fuel their own rise of power," he remarked. "And power-seeking is what this is all about. Our constitution, written by our founders, is intended to protect us against a threat identical to Donald Trump," he concluded, to applause.
Among the attendees were former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, both of whom spoke following Gore. Pelosi emphasized climate initiatives such as the Inflation Reduction Act and Pope Francis' advocacy, while Lurie highlighted San Francisco's efforts in recycling, renewable energy policies, and investments in electric vehicle infrastructure.
James del Carmen for TROIB News
Addressing attendees at the opening of San Francisco's Climate Week, Gore remarked that the Trump administration was "trying to create their own preferred version of reality" to further their sweeping agenda, reminiscent of Adolf Hitler's Nazi Party during the 1930s and ‘40s.
"I understand very well why it is wrong to compare Adolf Hitler's Third Reich to any other movement," he stated to an audience of around 150 climate advocates and policymakers at a science museum along San Francisco's waterfront. "It was uniquely evil, full stop. I get it. But there are important lessons from the history of that emergent evil."
His comments follow a string of sharp criticisms directed at the Trump administration from various prominent Democrats and former leaders in recent weeks.
Former President Barack Obama recently expressed his concerns about a federal government that threatens universities for protecting students exercising their right to free speech, warning that the values of the U.S. under Trump have deteriorated. Former Vice President Kamala Harris accused the Trump administration of engaging in unconstitutional actions that contribute to a "sense of fear." Additionally, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wrote in a New York Times guest essay that Trump is “squandering America’s strength and threatening our national security," part of a wave of critical responses from current Democratic officeholders adjusting their approaches to the White House.
In his address, Gore referenced the "moral autopsy on the Third Reich" conducted by German philosophers after World War II.
"It was [Jürgen] Habermas' mentor, Theodore Adorno, who wrote that the first step in that nation's descent into hell was, and I quote, 'the conversion of all questions of truth into questions of power,'" Gore noted. "He described how the Nazis, and I quote again, 'attacked the very heart of the distinction between true and false.' End quote. The Trump administration is insisting on trying to create their own preferred version of reality."
Gore’s remarks elicited no immediate response from White House officials when they were asked for comment.
The former vice president, whose 2006 documentary on global warming, "An Inconvenient Truth," won an Academy Award, also criticized Trump’s statements regarding climate change and energy technologies as part of his broader critique of the administration's dismantling of climate policies established by prior Democratic administrations.
"They say the climate crisis is a hoax invented by the Chinese to destroy American manufacturing," he declared. "They say coal is clean. They say wind turbines cause cancer. They say sea-level rise just creates more beachfront property."
He also referenced Martin Luther King, Jr. and the late Pope Francis in his 25-minute speech, primarily aimed at rallying the audience around the necessity for continued action on climate change.
"We've already seen, by the way, how populist authoritarian leaders have used migrants as scapegoats and have fanned the fires of xenophobia to fuel their own rise of power," he remarked. "And power-seeking is what this is all about. Our constitution, written by our founders, is intended to protect us against a threat identical to Donald Trump," he concluded, to applause.
Among the attendees were former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, both of whom spoke following Gore. Pelosi emphasized climate initiatives such as the Inflation Reduction Act and Pope Francis' advocacy, while Lurie highlighted San Francisco's efforts in recycling, renewable energy policies, and investments in electric vehicle infrastructure.
James del Carmen for TROIB News
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