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Headline Roundup October 23rd, 2024

Trump Said Hitler 'Did Some Good Things,' Praised Loyalty of 'Hitlers Generals': John Kelly

Summary from the AllSides News Team

Retired Gen. John Kelly, in an interview with the Atlantic (Left bias) on Tuesday, said former President Trump asked him why he can't be like Hitler's generals. The Trump campaign has denied the claims.

Key Quotes: Trump reportedly asked Kelly during his stint as chief-of-staff, “Why can’t you be like the German generals?” Kelly said he asked for clarification: "'Do you mean the kaiser’s generals? Surely you can’t mean Hitler’s generals?' And [Trump] said, 'Yeah, yeah, Hitler’s generals.'" Kelly also claimed Trump once said "Hitler did some good things" and praised Hitler for having "rebuilt the economy."

For Context: Kelly also told the New York Times (Lean Left bias) that Trump met the definition of a fascist and would rule like a dictator if allowed. 

Fox News: Fox & Friends co-host Brian Kilmeade commented on Trump's alleged remarks, saying, “Play this out: if your general, who’s your chief of staff and your Secretary of Defense [Jim Mattis, another retired general], is not doing what you say on an everyday basis, I could see him going, ‘I’d love generals that listened, that would be great.’” The Daily Beast (Left bias) framed Kilmeade's response as defending Trump's remarks about Hitler.

How the Media Covered It: Outlets on the left prominently covered the comments, while outlets on the right rarely did. On the left, outlets often lead with Trump's quote, sometimes attributing it to John Kelly's interview in the headline, and other times not. In contrast, the Daily Mail (Right bias) led their headline with "John Kelly doubles down on claims..."

Featured Coverage of this Story

From the Right
John Kelly doubles down on claims Donald Trump is a Hitler fan and thinks he 'did some good things'
News

Donald Trump's longest-serving White House chief-of-staff has doubled down on claims that the former president was a fan of Adolf Hitler and warns he would 'govern like a dictator if allowed'.

John Kelly, who served on Trump's staff from 2017 to 2019, in a scathing new interview with the New York Times has accused the GOP nominee of being the 'definition of fascist' and claims he does not have an understanding of American history or the Constitution.

Open on Daily Mail
From the Left
Trump: ‘I Need the Kind of Generals That Hitler Had’
Trump: ‘I Need the Kind of Generals That Hitler Had’

Mandel Ngan / AFP / Getty

News

In April 2020, Vanessa Guillén, a 20-year-old Army private, was bludgeoned to death by a fellow soldier at Fort Hood, in Texas. The killer, aided by his girlfriend, burned Guillén’s body. Guillén’s remains were discovered two months later, buried in a riverbank near the base, after a massive search.

Guillén, the daughter of Mexican immigrants, grew up in Houston, and her murder sparked outrage across Texas and beyond. Fort Hood had become known as a particularly perilous assignment for female soldiers, and members of Congress took up the cause of...

Open on The Atlantic
Possible Paywall
From the Center
John Kelly says Trump praised ‘Hitler’s generals’ for loyalty
John Kelly says Trump praised ‘Hitler’s generals’ for loyalty

The Hill

News

Retired Gen. John Kelly, who served as White House chief of staff in the Trump administration, said former President Trump praised Adolf Hitler’s generals for their loyalty in a new interview in The Atlantic on Tuesday. In the interview with editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg, Kelly affirmed reporting from Peter Baker and Susan Glasser’s book, “The Divider: Trump in the White House,” which quoted Trump asking Kelly, his chief of staff at the time, “Why can’t you be like the German generals?” According to Goldberg’s account of Baker and Glasser’s reporting, Kelly...

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Open on The Hill

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