Here’s a quote from a newly issued biography whose subject “liked to depict himself as a man of the people, but in fact despised the masses, which he regarded as nothing more than a tool to be manipulated to achieve his political ambitions.”

The subject believed the “receptivity of the masses is very limited. Their capacity to understand things is slight whereas their forgetfulness is great.” It becomes necessary to repeat slogans “for as long as it takes the dumbest member of the audience to get an idea of what they mean.”

The subject believed his opponents were corrupt,” “liars,” “unprincipled.”

Yes, the subject of thee words is, of course, Adolf Hitler. The words come from a major new biography written by German historian and journalist Volker Ullrich and from Hitler himself in his book “Mein Kampf.” And yes, there is no mistaking the parallels which may be drawn from those observations and the political ascension of Donald J. Trump.

There is little evidence from his campaign that Trump cares in any meaningful way about the masses; his directives and policies are more directly focused on the concerns of the wealthy elite, a group of whom the self-described billionaire sees himself a member.

But he also is clearly content at striking out against opponents — which include not merely Hillary Clinton but journalists, scientists, economists and anyone who would dispute him — with the most simplistic and argumentative of tactics. The Democrats are “corrupt” and “unprincipled,” words which more accurately describe Trump, his activities and his ethics.

People are a tool to be manipulated in the Trump campaign; tell them what they want to hear. And keep repeating it until they believe such foolishness as “we will build a wall” and “we will make America great again.” Words that are not merely meaningless but dangerous in their contemptuous demagoguery.

And no, this is not a declaration that Donald Trump is Adolf Hitler. That is far-fetched. But his tactics and his thinking do convey much of the style that helped bring Hitler to power in Germany. If you doubt that, read carefully through historian Ullrich’s heralded, comprehensive biography. It can make for some very scary reading.