The 250th
The United States celebrates 250 years of freedom this July 4th. Most Americans understand the importance of that milestone. They are celebrating the greatest and most noble nation on earth: a nation that has given its people unlimited opportunities to achieve their dreams and aspirations, and a country that is truly the home of a peaceful life, true liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. At this milestone, Americans should recommit to teaching civic knowledge, defending constitutional liberty, and preserving the economic freedom that has made the nation prosperous.
But there is an element led by Senator Bernie Sanders, New York’s Zohran Mamdani, and Congresswoman Sandy Cortez (AOC) that would have you believe otherwise. They are the new face of the Democratic Party. In fact, their politics move sharply toward socialism, and their agenda would give government far more control over individual life and economic choice. They have also found support among too many young, overeducated liberal citizens.
That’s because this nation’s education system has too often failed to teach basic Civics. Many young Americans have not been given a clear understanding of the United States Constitution, the separation of powers, federalism, individual rights, and the responsibilities of citizenship. In America’s secondary schools, colleges, and universities, too many students are taught a one-sided view of the country’s past. In too many classrooms, they hear more about injustice than liberty. The legacy media reinforces that imbalance, and the result is a weaker understanding of our American heritage. That weakens the patriotism needed to preserve our freedom.
If we don’t teach the historical truth about our nation, young people will likely only hear the lies from the Mamdani’s of the world: that America is an essentially unjust nation and unworthy of our love. We cannot let that happen, especially as America marks its 250th anniversary.
Rep. Sandy Cortez (AOC), Mayor Mamdani, and his “godfather”, Senator Bernie Sanders, loathe the free marketplace. They argue that billionaires control production and exploit ordinary people. Mao, Lenin, and Fidel preached the same bullschiff. History documents the millions who died under communist regimes, including the tens of millions who died under Mao in China. Those who want a centralized economic system run by government are sacrificing their own freedom and supporting the conditions for a police state. There has never been a communist government that did not oppress its citizens.
The American Revolution 250 years ago was all about an oppressive government attempting to control the population through heinous taxation and suffocating policies. Anybody who believes the government has a “right” to tax, regulate, or seize individual assets at will is embracing a dangerous, collectivist idea. Too many people accept that premise, and progressive governance too often supports policies that move in that direction. Under that system, life options will be severely curtailed.
In New York, Mamdani and his cadre were elected because of apathy and obliviousness on the part of many residents. This trend will continue unless informed citizens confront it. Those citizens understand that capitalism provides opportunity while communism certainly does not. Make no mistake: the “Democratic Socialists” want to control your hopes and accomplishments.
We need a second American Revolution, one that is a call for a renewal of what the founders had in mind: that this is a noble and just nation that continues to cure its faults; a nation that assimilates legal immigrants; a nation that understands that legal immigration without assimilation weakens national cohesion; and a nation that condemns those living in it who march and proclaim, “Death to America,” as was recently seen in Dearborn, Michigan. The actions of those who march and spout that phrase are pure evil. Why are those people here if they hate this country?
This nation, on its 250th birthday, is at a crossroads. The spread of Marxism is real and propelled by the ignorance of its consequences. The invasion of our nation by those who don’t believe in its founding principles is real. We don’t need a nation of Mugwumps who are unable to make up their minds on controversial issues. It’s time to stand up for the American dream and the promise the founders made.
In 1964, before he became President, Ronald Reagan gave a speech widely known as “A Time for Choosing.” His warning remains relevant today:
“If we lose freedom here, there is no place to escape to. This is the last stand on Earth. And this idea that government is beholden to the people, that it has no other source of power except to sovereign people, is still the newest and most unique idea in all the long history of man’s relation to man. This is the issue of this election: whether we believe in our capacity for self-government or whether we abandon the American Revolution and confess that a little intellectual elite in a far-distant capital can plan our lives for us better than we can plan them ourselves.”
As I look forward to the Nation’s 250th birthday, I do not want my life choices governed or planned by the beliefs of politicians who reject the free market, distrust individual liberty, and believe government can plan our lives better than we can.