Donald Trump is unusually attached to the language of state violence. He rages about punching people in the face and beating up protesters. He talks about summary executions and the collective punishment of terrorists’ families. Time and again he advocates the use of torture, not only to gain information from suspects, but as a sort of sadistic, morally righteous cleansing ritual.
When the Republican front-runner harks back to the good old days when protesters were carried out on stretchers, he prowls the stage, leaning slightly forward, his body tensed in excitement. You can hear in his voice, which deepens strategically as he bellows for violence, the frisson of the forbidden.
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