36 hours ago Republican strategist and former John McCain campaign manager Steve Schmidt neatly summarized the connection between Donald Trump and rightwing nutter violence — a connection that was reiterated to some extent by yesterday’s anti-Semitic massacre in Pittsburgh:

Schmidt: “The billon-dollar anger and conspiracy industry has infested 35% to 40% of American people…they have become fanatics, a cult of personality and a cult of shared victimhood…it’s important to understand [the links between] conspiracy and victimization, and the constancy of Trump’s assault upon objective truth…to these people what’s true is what the leader believes is true, or says is true, or directs them to believe is true….this is incompatible with a healthily functioning Democratic society.

“We have arrived at this dark hour because of Donald Trump….he created the atmosphere in which this sick person would actualize Trump’s intent…he’s the tribal chief of a tribal function that has declared war on the majority of this country…this sick or evil person [in southern Florida] decided to become a soldier in Trump’s army, to kill the enemies, and what we saw was the largest mass assassination plot in [American] history…we haven’t seen something like this since Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.

“Anybody who doesn’t see the clear connection between the [current] atmosphere and what has happened here has either suspended disbelief, or is complicit and dishonest, or is so brainwashed that they’ve stopped being able to think for themselves.”