In the wake of the most recent terrorist plot, President Bush read a statement today in which he desribed the United States as being "at war with Islamic Fascists."  The President explained:

The recent arrests that our fellow citizens are now learning about are a stark reminder that this nation is at war with Islamic fascists who will use any means to destroy those of us who love freedom, to hurt our nation. (emphasis added)

This phrase-- "Islamic fascists"-- seems to be the way in which the Administration has recently begun to characterize the opponents of the United States. My search of the White House website indicates only five use of the phrase-- all within the past four months. And frequently, the term is used together with "totalitarianism."

The first use of "Islamic fascists" was during a joint press conference with Tony Blair on May 25th. Bush said:

You know, al Qaeda has made it clear what their intentions are in Iraq. I'm sure you've read some of the intercepts that are laid out there for people to see. And they have made it clear that it's just a matter of time for countries like Great Britain and the United States to leave. In other words, if they make life miserable enough, we'll leave. And they want us to leave because they want a safe haven from which to launch attacks, not only on us, but on moderate Muslim governments, as well. These people are totalitarians. They're Islamic fascists. They have a point of view, they have a philosophy, and they want to impose that philosophy on the rest of the world. And Iraq just happens to be a -- one of the battles in the war on terror. (emphasis added)

At a press conference on June 14th, the President noted:

See, Iraq is a part of the global war on terror. It's not "the" global war on terror, it's a theater in the global war on terror. And if we fail in Iraq, it's going to embolden al Qaeda types. It will weaken the resolve of moderate nations to stand up to the Islamic fascists. It will cause people to lose their nerve and not stay strong. (emphasis added)

Tony Snow then used the phrase at a press conference on July27th:

Al Qaeda's military capabilities have been significantly degraded, and everybody knows that. And so now Ayman al-Zawahiri is issuing tapes. I think it is worth reminding people that a global war on terror involves disparate terrorist organizations using mass communications to achieve the same end, which is to destabilize hopes of democracy and to foment violent action against sovereign governments so that they can spread their own totalitarian brand of Islamic fascism. (emphasis added)

This past Monday, August 7th, Bush used versions of the phrase repeatedly in the press conference he held with Secretary of State Rice:

It is the great challenge of this century and it's this: As young democracies flourish, terrorists try to stop their progress. And it's the great challenge of the United States and others who are blessed with living in free countries. Not only do terrorists try to stop the advance of democracy through killing innocent people within those countries, they also try to shape the will of the western world by killing innocent westerners. They try to spread their jihadist message -- a message I call, it's totalitarian in nature -- Islamic radicalism, Islamic fascism, they try to spread it as well by taking the attack to those of us who love freedom.

.   .   .

This is the beginning of a long struggle against an ideology that is real and profound. It's Islamo-fascism. It comes in different forms. They share the same tactics, which is to destroy people and things in order to create chaos in the hopes that their vision of the world become predominant in the Middle East.

And Condi and I will work hard -- by the way, the United States can't win this war alone. We can do damage to the enemy. We can take the philosophical high ground and remind people of the importance of how freedom can change societies. But we will work with allies and friends to achieve this objective. And part of the challenge in the 21st century is to remind people about the stakes, and remind people that in moments of quiet, there's still an Islamic fascist group plotting, planning and trying to spread their ideology. And one of the things that -- one of the things that came out of this unfortunate incident in the Middle East is it is a stark reminder that there are those who want to stop the advance of liberty and destabilize young democracies. And they're willing to kill people to do so.

The use of these terms-- "Islamic fascism" and "totalitarianism"-- is most interesting. Unlike many previous Administration statements that characterized the enemy merely as "terrorists," these statements indicate an effort to describe both a brand of ideology and a method of imposing that ideology-- I take totalitarianism to be a method of imposing the ideology. As some level, the use of these terms seems to be a theoretical advance. Terrorism is, after all, a tactic that could be used by any number of different non-state actors, rather than a moniker that is descriptive of a particular group, organization, or movement. The Bader-Meinhoff Group, the Red Army, the Red Brigade, the IRA, the PLO, the Weathermen, al Qaeda, and Hezbollah have all used terrorist tactics-- that is, they are all non-state actors that have all engaged in "the threat or use of force, undertaken for political purposes   .   .  . that intentionally targets civilians and other noncombatants in violation of existing law relating to the conduct of hostilities."  Yet it goes without saying that these groups are fundamentally different from one another.  By using terms that describes an ideology and a method of imposing the ideology, Bush seems to be differentiating the particular opponents of the U.S. from all other groups that may engage in terrorist tactics.

Moreover, the use of "Islamic fascism " and "totalitarianism" also seems to have a significant public relations component. It reminds me of the Second World War. At that time, the United States and its allies were often portrayed as fighting a war against "fascism" or "totalitarianism." By using these words, Bush seems to be connecting the current conflict with what is often seen as the epic battle between good and evil that played itself our in World War II.  Perhaps such association with World War II will garner more support from the American people and our allies, and perhaps it will suggest that just as the Allies defeated the fascist powers in the middle of the last century, the United States and its partners will win this current battle with "Islamic fascism."

I will be interested in seeing how other commentators analyze this new language from the Administration.