LATE BREAKING UPDATE: The Coast Guard had to TACO and ‘cave’ on this dumb idea. Per CNN: “The US Coast Guard on Thursday issued a memo that reclassifies swastikas and nooses as “hate symbols,” in a rapid about-face after facing intense scrutiny for a previous policy change which downplayed their display as merely “potentially divisive.”” — eds.
Displaying a swastika will reportedly no longer be explicitly banned in the U.S. Coast Guard, after the Trump administration changed its policy to say that the image used by Nazis and white supremacists is not classified as a “hate symbol” but rather as a “potentially divisive” mark.
It also reportedly removed nooses—a symbol of hate against Black Americans—from its list of hate symbols, according to the Washington Post’s report, which the Department of Homeland Security denied.
“This is an absolute ludicrous lie and unequivocally false,” DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin wrote on X. “The [Post] should be embarrassed it published this fake crap.”
The Coast Guard also denied the report.
“The claims that the U.S. Coast Guard will no longer classify swastikas, nooses or other extremist imagery as prohibited symbols are categorically false. These symbols have been and remain prohibited in the Coast Guard per policy,” acting Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Kevin Lunday said in a statement to The Hill.
Still, the Post’s report was based on documents obtained and confirmed by a Coast Guard official who saw the policy change firsthand.
“We don’t deserve the trust of the nation if we’re unclear about the divisiveness of swastikas,” they said.
When the Washington Post first reached out to the Coast Guard, it did not deny the policy change but rather referred the publication to DHS, which oversees the Coast Guard. DHS did not respond to the Post’s request for comment before the story was published.
Of course, it’s hard to believe anything McLaughlin or anyone in the Trump administration says, as they have shown over and over again their willingness to lie.
What’s more, the Trump administration has made similarly vile changes to policies as part of its war on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives, which Trump has crusaded against since retaking office.
Trump’s anti-DEI crusade has led the federal government to whitewash history and erase information about trailblazing Black people, Native Americans, and women who made significant accomplishments to help the military—despite the discrimination they faced.
But regardless of DEI initiatives, it’s hard to argue that swastikas and nooses are not symbols of hate. And Democrats wasted no time denouncing the new policy.
“If a swastika or a noose isn’t a symbol of hate, what on earth is?” Rep. Mark Pocan of Wisconsin wrote on X.
And Rep. Mike Quigley of Illinois wrote, “I can’t believe we even have to say this, but swastikas, nooses, and other hate emblems aren’t ‘potentially divisive.’ They’re symbols of terror and should continue to be banned by our troops.”
Reclassifying swastikas as “potentially divisive” rather than explicitly as hate symbols is unlikely to help the Trump administration beat back its “Nazi problem.” In recent weeks, two Trump administration nominees had to withdraw after reports exposed their past racist comments.
Paul Ingrassia, whom Trump selected in May to head the Office of Special Counsel, withdrew his nomination after reports revealed that he sent vile text messages in 2024 in which he described himself as having a “Nazi streak,” among other racist comments.
And in September, Trump withdrew his nominee to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics, E.J. Antoni, after GOP senators refused to confirm him. Antoni had a giant image of a Nazi warship in his office, which he said was “hard not to love.”
Politico also obtained a text thread in October between Young Republican leaders who discussed sending people to gas chambers and loving for Hitler. That same month, a swastika was spotted in the office of a GOP Rep. Dave Taylor of Ohio.
Even right-wing lunatic Laura Loomer—who has convinced Trump to purge his administration of anyone she deems as insufficiently loyal—admitted that Republicans have a Nazi problem.
“I’m going to say it. The GOP has a Nazi problem. And the more we pretend like we don’t, the worse it’s going to get,” she wrote on X. “We do. Don’t tell me we don’t.”
Surely removing swastikas from a list of hate symbols will fix it.
Published with permission of Daily Kos
