“America First” Was a Warning, Not a Slogan: Lindbergh, Hitler, Trump and Musk

Trump didn’t invent the phrase—he inherited it from Lindbergh, who admired Hitler. We forget that at our peril.

When Donald Trump bellows “America First,” it lands as patriotic thunder for his supporters. But the echo is much older—and much darker.

This week, while listening to Senator Angus King speak with Charlie Kirk, I heard something chilling. Senator King mentioned that Trump might not even know where “America First” comes from. And he’s right: most Americans don’t.

But we should.

The phrase “America First” was popularized in the 1930s by none other than Charles Lindbergh—yes, the aviation hero turned isolationist demagogue. Lindbergh used “America First” to rally opposition to U.S. intervention in World War II. But behind the scenes—and eventually in front of them—he was cozying up to fascism. He praised Nazi Germany, accepted a medal from Hermann Göring, and publicly blamed “the Jews” for pushing America toward war. He was not subtle. And neither is Trump.

Today, Elon Musk joins Trump in reviving this eerie triumvirate: nativist rhetoric, technocratic egotism, and the slow flirtation with fascism. Musk may mock or jab at Trump, but make no mistake—they operate in the same gravitational pull: white grievance, male fragility, and a belief that “great men” must save the nation from the “corrupt masses.”

America First is not a policy. It is not a strategy. It is a signal.

It says: We are the real Americans. The rest of you are tolerated at best, expendable at worst.

It says: Might makes right. Empathy is weakness. Unity is naïve.

Lindbergh said it in 1941. Trump says it now. And people like Musk launder it with techno-glamour and smug superiority.

Historical Memory is National Sanity

We like to imagine the past as settled. Lindbergh was wrong, we tell ourselves. FDR saved democracy. We won.

But what if we’re living through the sequel?

What if Trump is Lindbergh 2.0—and no Roosevelt waiting in the wings?

What if the rise of AI and surveillance capitalism is just the next phase of authoritarian innovation?

What if “America First” isn’t history—but prophecy?

Your Move

If we are to reclaim this country, we must remember what these slogans mean—and who first used them.

We must ask: Why is Trump still using it?

And why are we still letting him?

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