After inciting his followers to riot the U.S. Capitol while Congress was certifying President-Elect Joe Biden’s election victory, Donald Trump is receiving well-deserved criticism from the nation regarding his failure to act as a positive leader of America. The latest critique on Trump’s time in office comes from former Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
On Sunday, Schwarzenegger released a video message on Twitter, calling Trump a “failed leader” for his part in the Capitol attack on Jan. 6, and comparing his domestic terrorist followers to Nazis.
“President Trump sought to overturn the results of an election and of a fair election,” Schwarzenegger, who is Republican, continued. “He sought a coup by misleading people with lies. My father and our neighbors were misled also with lies, and I know where such lies lead. President Trump is a failed leader. He will go down in history as the worst president ever. The good thing is he will soon be as irrelevant as an old Tweet.”
When discussing the disturbing action taken by Pro-Trump rioters last week, the former Governor compared the events that took place that day to “The Night of Broken Glass” in 1938, in which the Nazi’s ascend into power began resulting in the death of nearly 6 million Jews.
He also compared Trump’s most notable followers, the Proud Boys, an all-man far-right extremist group, to Nazis condemning them of “trampling the very principles on which our country was founded.”
“Growing up, I was surrounded by broken men drinking away the guilt over their participation in the most evil regime in history,” he said in the video. “Not all of them were evil anti-semites or Nazis. Many just went along step-by-step down the road. They were the people next door.”
The “Terminator” actor asks those involved in the “violent disruptions,” Trump and his followers, to hold themselves accountable.
“What are we to make of those elected officials who have enabled his lies and his treachery?” he asks. “I will remind them of what Teddy Roosevelt said, ‘Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does not mean to stand by the president.'”
Schwarzenegger then called for unity.
“We need to look past ourselves, our parties, and disagreements and put our democracy first. And we need to heal, together, from the drama of what’s just happened. We need to heal, not just as Republicans or Democrats, but as Americans.”
My message to my fellow Americans and friends around the world following this week's attack on the Capitol. pic.twitter.com/blOy35LWJ5
— Arnold (@Schwarzenegger) January 10, 2021
