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Sunday morning a parody account for Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump tweeted a well-known quote from fascist dictator Benito Mussolini, adding Trump signature slogan, #MakeAmericaGreatAgain:
“It is better to live one day as a lion than 100 years as a sheep.” – @realDonaldTrump#MakeAmericaGreatAgain
— ilduce2016 (@ilduce2016) February 28, 2016
Then, Trump retweeted the quote, "It is better to live one day as a lion than 100 years as a sheep," to his own followers:
"@ilduce2016: “It is better to live one day as a lion than 100 years as a sheep.” – @realDonaldTrump#MakeAmericaGreatAgain"
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 28, 2016
Twitter user David Itzkoff retweeted the Mussolini quote, which was published in Time magazine August 2, 1943.
Donald Trump today, and Time Magazine, August 2, 1943. pic.twitter.com/4EK6crWQQM
— Dave Itzkoff (@ditzkoff) February 28, 2016
Others who agreed with the comparison were quick to add their own Trump-Mussolini observations to the conversation:
.@realDonaldTrump@ilduce2016 Oh the irony... pic.twitter.com/Xio1WZCBVs
— Andrew Challand (@AndrewChalland) February 28, 2016
.@realDonaldTrump@ilduce2016 That is a quote from Benito Mussolini, the Italian Fascist dictator. The clue was "Il Duce" you clown!
— Bob Ward (@ret_ward) February 28, 2016
Why is @realDonaldTrump retweeting an account with the name @ilduce2016 who has a profile picture of Mussolini with a Trump wig? #fascist
— Kevin McKague (@KevinOfMI) February 28, 2016
This is not the first time Trump has been compared to the fascist dictator who killed hundreds of thousands during his rise to power in World War II. Author and politics professor Dr. Joseph Loconte wrote a piece comparing Trump's campaign to the political career of Il Duce earlier this month:
"Whether from the political left or political right, Mussolini’s ghost seems to be haunting the American electorate," he wrote. "Demagogues cannot thrive without disillusionment, and disillusionment has become the watchword for our troubled times. Our escape from freedom is well underway."
