Bingo.

Mainstream media was asleep at the wheel as the fascist threat solidified.

Either that, or they were willfully obfuscating what was a clear-as-day motion towards fascism.

Google: trump fascism before:2016-01-01

Why you should stop calling Donald Trump a fascist. December 4, 2015

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/12/04/why-you-should-stop-calling-donald-trump-a-fascist/

Donald Trump Isn’t a Fascist; He’s a Media-Savvy Know-Nothing. December 28, 2015

https://www.newyorker.com/news/john-cassidy/donald-trump-isnt-a-fascist-hes-a-media-savvy-know-nothing

Whose Fascism Is This, Anyway? Dec. 15, 2015

https://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/16/opinion/whose-fascism-is-this-anyway.html

Is Donald Trump leading a proto-fascist movement? August 28, 2015

https://theweek.com/articles/574097/donald-trump-leading-protofascist-movement

Trump May Be a Loudmouthed Demagogue, but Is He a Fascist? Donald Trump’s anti-Muslim rhetoric has his opponents likening him to Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler. Such comparisons may be misplaced.

https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/12/09/trump-may-be-a-loudmouthed-demagogue-but-is-he-a-fascist/

Is Donald Trump a Fascist?

https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-fascist-354690