He saw the Castro takeover in Cuba, and he describes the feeling he has now just like Umair in the article you linked to; deja vu.

Note, Rudy is neither a right winger nor a doctrinaire communist, he has always considered himself a Liberal, left of center, like most Cubans of the middle class, the ones with some formal education past public school, whose families owned businesses, or worked as professionals or administrators, managers or skilled workers. His father had owned smd operated a small private school. He loathes communism.

But Rudy knows how fascists take over, how they sneak up on you. He witnessed it himself, although in his case the fascism came from the Left, not the Right. He is terrified right now, when he calls me he asks; "Don't Americans see this, its as plain as day. This is just how it began in Cuba. Why don't you (me and my countrymen) DO something? WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?" And I don't now how to answer him.

I tell him; "Tis not a banana republic, we don't shoot or arrest or exile unpopular leaders, we are a nation of laws." And he answers; "Trump doesn't care anything about the law, and nothing seems to happen." And I don't know how to answer him. All I can say is "The Cuban people never stopped Castro, either."

We have gone through all our options, and none has worked. All that remains is the November election. If that fails, we will be stuck with the Trumps and Gingriches and Barrs and Millers and Bannons forever.

Only aqssasination, war or revolution will dislodge them, and those three never turn out the way you hope they will.

"La historia me absolvera"
-Fidel Castro