Cambridge Analytica Founder: Trump Used Same Tactics As Hitler To Get Elected

Nigel Oakes, the founder and CEO of Cambridge Analytica’s parent company SCL, made remarks last November comparing Donald Trump’s anti-Muslim campaign tactics to the anti-semitic propaganda methods of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi party, according to newly released recordings.

“It’s the things that resonate—some of those to attack the other group and know that you’re going to lose them is going to reinforce and resonate your group. […] Of course, Hitler attacked the Jews. He didn’t have a problem with the Jews at all, but the people didn’t like the Jews… so he just leveraged an artificial enemy. Well, that’s exactly what Trump did. He leveraged a Muslim,” Oakes said in the recording.

“ISIS is real, but how big a threat is ISIS really to America? Really, I mean, we are still talking about 9/11—well, 9/11 is a long time ago,” he added.

Cambridge Analytica responded, tweeting that Oakes was speaking in a “personal capacity.”

Oakes was speaking in a personal capacity about the historical use of propaganda to an academic he knew well from her work in the defence sphere. To characterise his remarks as anything else is an attempt to completely misrepresent our values & those of our diverse employees​.

— Cambridge Analytica (@CamAnalytica) April 16, 2018