US conservatives are so fixated on this idea of tyranny coming from 'big government' - people who think they know what's best for everyone and want to control them - that they have no idea where most dictatorships, historically and currently, actually come from, which is to say basic criminality and corruption, and they can't see the warning signs.
It feels funny to quote something from Star Wars but, seriously, it fits very well:
"So this is how liberty dies ... with thundering applause."
When the stars threw down their spears
And watered heaven with their tears:
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the lamb make thee?