History is crystal clear. Nazis seized power using free speech. And then they shut it off for others, doubling the proof they knowingly exploited free speech as a lethal weapon.
The Weimar Republic emerged from World War I with remarkably progressive free speech protections that invited abuse and attack. Article 118 of its constitution guaranteed freedom of opinion and expression in language that would soon prove fatally vulnerable to exploitation by hate groups.
Every German has the right, within the limits of the general laws, to express his opinion by word, writing, printing, picture, or otherwise. No restriction of this right by any labor or employment relationship may be imposed, and no one may be disadvantaged for exercising this freedom.
Censorship shall not take place, though restrictions for cinemas may be established by law. Also lawful are the fight against obscene and indecent literature, as well as legal measures for the protection of youth at public events and displays.
The Nazi party recognized these speech protections as their most powerful weapon in their arsenal that would prevent the Weimar from stopping their lethal assaults. They used newspapers like Der Stürmer to spread vicious antisemitic propaganda and nationalist rhetoric, with minimal consequences for damage caused. When they did face restrictions, Hitler spun any and all resistence to his attacks as evidence of the “superior race” under persecution.
The J.D. Vance free speech victim narrative, presented in his 2025 Munich speech asking Nazis to be put back in power, was central to the 1920s Nazi strategy to destroy democracy from within existing channels. Or as conservative columnist John Podhoretz just put it:
I’m glad Margaret Brennan blamed free speech for the rise of the Nazis.
He’s glad because her objective statement of truth is like chumming the waters for the Nazi disinformation sharks who love to abuse free speech. They’re all lining up to attack Brennan with illogical and personal attacks just for her daring to speak up honestly and openly about reality.
When Hitler was tried for treason after the Beer Hall Putsch in 1923, he transformed his trial into an expansive propaganda platform. Rather than defending himself against the charges, he barked out lengthy political diatribes to portray himself as the only patriot in Germany and one who was being silenced by shadowy forces that didn’t respect his free speech extremism. The lenient sentence he received greatly amplified this toxic pivot and message.
The pattern thus rose to significance during 1925-1927 when again several German states attempted to temporarily ban Hitler from abuse of others in public, as he should have been stopped all along. The Nazi party seized on any and all restrictions of their hate speech as damning proof that the establishment feared their “truth”. Their explosive false victim narrative around demanding extreme free speech undeniably became intertwined with a sudden militant rise of Nazism.
Brownshirt “SA” violent thugs (frequently referenced by the German “AfD” party as their inspiration) at this point were physically attacking meetings of political opponents in stark contradiction to bombastic free speech proclamations, which their supporters more than willingly overlooked.
By contrast in America, at this same time, Silvershirt (Nazi) meetings were being physically attacked and broken up by militant Jewish gangs, which proved hard-nosed censorship of hate groups in America worked. One of the main reasons Nazism didn’t rise as easily in America was this implementation of Popper’s tolerance paradox. Notably, directly and forcibly restricting extremist speech was the American thing to do, whereas in Germany Nazism benefited from far more lax restrictions. Allowed ultimate freedom to speak and speak and speak, they abused that right all the way until they seized absolute power.
Joseph Goebbels proved particularly skilled at this manipulation game of free speech for me, not for thee. When Nazi publications faced temporary bans in 1931-1932, he again framed it as evidence of a vast conspiracy against the German people and demanded unrestricted speech or violence. The Nazis positioned themselves as the martyrs for free expression and its staunchest defenders, while clearly preventing speech of others.
The cruel irony became tragically clear once they seized power in 1933 and officially removed all the free speech they had claimed could never be taken away. They immediately moved to eliminate the very freedoms they had exploited, using the Reichstag Fire Decree and Enabling Act to crush opposition newspapers and implement comprehensive censorship.
The cynical strategy had worked, because of free speech – they had expanded vulnerability at every turn by demanding extreme free speech long enough to flip and destroy all free speech.
This history offers a sobering lesson in how anti-democratic forces have and will continue to weaponize democratic freedoms. The Nazis understood that claims of censorship and persecution would resonate with the public’s belief in free expression, such that they could use it as the primary vulnerability to enable their destruction of the state. They exploited this sentiment while simultaneously working intending to slam the door they said had to always remain open.
Their success hinged on this cynical double game – championing free speech until they had power to eliminate it entirely.
Let me now analyze the coordinated disinformation campaign evident in JD Vance’s social media posts. He demonstrates a conspiracy of historical revisionism that mirrors Nazi propaganda techniques.
Three accounts, shown below, deploy a classic military-grade disinformation tactic: deliberately conflating two distinct historical facts to obscure an uncomfortable truth. Specifically, they substitute the historically documented fact that “the Nazi party exploited free speech protections to seize power” with the absurd strawman of “free speech caused ABC” instead.
You say free speech gave rise to Nazism. JD Vance says you look like an idiot for claiming that free speech causes cancer, which you never said.
This fallacy tactic of substitution serves a clear purpose for Vance. By misrepresenting the factual argument as claiming free speech directly caused some other event instead, he avoids confronting the documented historical reality: the Nazi party strategically weaponized democratic freedoms, particularly free speech protections, as a calculated means to achieve power – only to immediately eliminate those same freedoms once in control.
The nature of these three accounts using identical rhetorical tactics to distort the same historical truth, suggests they are running an organized propaganda campaign to replicate the very techniques they seek to obscure.
It is particularly concerning to see influential public figures deliberately misrepresenting a crucial historical lesson about how democratic freedoms are weaponized against democracy itself.
- Michael Brendan
- Truth: Nazis exploited free speech protections in Weimar Germany to gain the power that later enabled them to conduct the Holocaust.
- His Tweet: “This is the first time I’ve heard the theory that the Holocaust wasn’t conducted with gas chambers but with free speech zones.”
- Analysis: No one claimed the Holocaust was “conducted with free speech.” He is deliberately misrepresenting a point to avoid admitting the hard truth: Nazis used free speech to seize power.
- JD Vance
- Truth: The media accurately stated that Nazis exploited free speech protections to gain power, then eliminated those rights.
- His Tweet: “Does the media really think the holocaust was caused by free speech?”
- Analysis: Again, nobody said what he is claiming, a logical fallacy (strawman). Vance deliberately confuses “Nazis used free speech to seize power” with “free speech caused the Holocaust” to deflect from the historical hard truth that Nazis weaponized free speech to seize power
- Elon Musk
- Truth: Nazis exploited free speech until they gained power, then immediately crushed it. The fact that they immediately eliminated free speech upon taking power demonstrates they knew exactly how vulnerable free speech is to abuse for seizing power and always planned to deny it to others.
- His Tweet: “One of the first things Hitler did upon gaining power was apply aggressive censorship”
- Analysis: This actually proves the original point, essentially the Nazis came to power because of free speech and why they heavily targeted it once in power. If free speech wasn’t how the Nazis came to power, the Nazis would not have shut down free speech. Elon Musk in fact has a long history of promoting Nazism as interchangable with “free speech extremism”.
This coordinated response demonstrates pre-planned application of historical Nazi propaganda techniques while attempting to obscure those very same techniques. It does actually mean these three accounts are intentionally and very actively promoting Nazism. But this should surprise no one.
The idea that “free speech defeated Nazis” is a dangerous myth that ignores how American society actually responded to Nazi threats – with force, not just counter-arguments.
Of course Nazi’s suppressed free speech once they seized power because they knew it would be used to provide an opposing view to contradict what they were saying and expose their fraud and crimes. That’s like Exxon opposing scientists talking about climate change, then seizing total control of state communications and making it illegal… oh wait.
Here are four things that happened in America totally crushing the Nazis in ways that prevented their free speech, unlike Germany where they literally got away with murder.
1. The Silvershirts (American Nazi organization) were physically beaten down and their meetings violently broken up by Jewish mobsters like Bugsy Siegel and Meyer Lansky, who saw it as their patriotic duty. This wasn’t some fluffy “counter-narrative” in debate class – it was direct effective violent suppression of Nazi organizing.
2. The U.S. government actively prosecuted Nazi sympathizers under sedition laws, particularly targeting “America First” voices during WWII. The Smith Act (1940) was used to prosecute over 100 pro-Nazi agitators. This wasn’t any “marketplace of ideas” – it was legal suppression. Sedition. That’s a hard no on freedom of speech.
3. The German-American Bund (Nazi organization) was forcibly disbanded by the FBI in 1941, its assets seized, and its leaders arrested. This wasn’t “public exposure” – it was state action to crush Nazi organizing. Again, no free speech for them Nazis.
4. Anti-Nazi boycotts in the 1930s weren’t just about some speeches – they involved very physical confrontations to prevent gathering of Nazi rallies and meetings. The Jewish War Veterans and other groups actively disrupted Nazis trying to assemble.
Those are the facts. America’s lack of free speech kept the Nazis out of power.
You are preaching the truth, brother. We also could say the Civil Rights Movement succeeded not because of “unlimited free speech” but because activists deliberately violated Jim Crow harsh speech restrictions, often facing violence and death for doing so! America has some of the most extreme censorship in history.
Jim Crow wasn’t just about physical segregation – it was built on aggressive speech control.
American laws actively suppressed anti-segregation speech when they made it illegal to advocate for integration, they banned books and newspapers promoting racial equality, they criminalized teaching about civil rights, and prevented public gatherings to discuss racial justice.
Who are we kidding when we pretend America doesn’t censor speech?
The system maintained power through terrorizing people into silence! There was violent retaliation against those who spoke up. And economic retaliation was used against protesters. Everyone knows freedom to have cross burnings was to intimidate civil rights speech. And of course there were widespread murders of civil rights activists who dared speak.
Man, I’m just getting started. Free speech in America? Vance is a tool and a fool.
Jim Crow states had sedition laws used against civil rights leaders, bans on NAACP organizing, censorship of pro-integration media, and even required loyalty oaths for teachers.
Loyalty oaths to racism!
When Vance says he likes free speech he means the kind that let Jim Crow states censor American Blacks using the kind of toxic hypocrisy essential to maintaining white nationalism.
Of course that dude is asking Germany to open the floodgates to Nazism. He’s basically telling America cross burnings are back baby. He’s a grievance child, complaining his white family wasn’t rich because the American “gag rule” of slavery didn’t last long enough for him to have some Black women he could legally rape by making it criminal for them to speak about it.
Know your history:
1781: “I am now Freeman.” Elizabeth Freeman https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/elizabeth-freeman
1836: “Am I gagged or am I not?” John Quincy Adams