From the original hijack in the DeSantis and Disney thread:
When one side of the political divide is a ruthless authoritarian like DeSantis seeking to demonize vulnerable minorities, the “divisiveness” is already there. Terms like “proto-fascism” didn’t create the extremism on one side of American political reality, they just accurately describe it. Conversely, soft-pedaling undemocratic authoritarianism won’t make it go away, but instead gives it more leeway to insidiously establish itself, with the support of those who think they’re just voting for lower taxes and less business regulation.