OPINION:
New York Rep. Tom Suozzi wrote an op-ed that was published in The Wall Street Journal earlier this month that began with this short sentence: “I love America.” What’s newsworthy about that statement is that Suozzi is a Democrat.
Stumbling across a Democrat who openly claims love for this country is like finding a $50 bill on the side of the road — or seeing a unicorn. It just doesn’t happen.
Democrats campaigning for office may talk a good game about the greatness of this country; about their admiration for this country; about even their supposed love for this country. But in the next breath they run down the long, long list of grievances about America, and name all the offenses and sins this nation has committed. Some take to the global stage to apologize for this country. Some vow to fix all that’s wrong with this country. Some promise to shift the foundations of the country so that it’s more in line with the modern way of thinking.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, in July 3 remarks, said: “We are told that America is exceptional because we re richer, stronger, more powerful than anyone else. The truth my friends is America is exceptional because nothing is fixed into place. … There are some who respond to those who ask for more from America with a simple refrain, ‘Love it or leave it,’ they say. … It is precisely because we love this nation that we will not leave it.”
Democrats don’t love America so much as they love the resources America offers for their taking.
Their love for this country reminds of the type of love a control freak girl might have for her boyfriend — ‘I love you,’ she says, while demanding he change his hair style; his clothing; his car; his friends; his educational pursuits; his career aspirations; his leisure pursuits; his mannerisms and demeanor; his way of speaking and behaving; ultimately, his hopes, dreams and goals. At a certain point, the question pops: What is exactly you love about me?
Ask today’s Democrats the same.
What exactly is it you love about America?
This country was not founded in the manner of land expansion — as a means of exploiting physical resources for personal and political and governmental wealth. Not really. Not according to its founding documents.
“In the name of God, Amen,” are the opening words of the Mayflower Compact of 1620.
“We, whose names are underwritten … having undertaken for the glory of God, and advancement of the Christian faith …” continued the words of the Compact.
And then came 1776, and of course, the Declaration of Independence, stating, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights …”
The framers of the Constitution understood well the link between liberty and belief in God; between freedom and faith. They both knew and warned individual rights could only exist so long as the people are moral and virtuous, because it’s only moral and virtuous people who are capable of self-governance — and moreover, that morals and virtues cannot be subjected to the interpretation and will of humans, but rather need to be rooted in something higher, something fixed, something unchanging: that is, God. That is, the Bible and biblical values. That is, Judeo-Christian principles.
That’s American Exceptionalism.
It’s the idea that rights and liberties come from God, and are given to each and every individual at birth, and that governments are only instituted among humankind to preserve and protect what’s given each and every individual at birth, by God. That’s the founding of America. That’s what makes America great. That’s why people love this country and seek to come here.
Democrats look at America and see land and resources and people to rule — and profess their love for this country.
Republicans, conservatives, MAGAs, patriots look at America and see the spirit of liberty that God graced us with — and profess their gratitude for this nation.
“Democrats have long believed that America is great not because it is perfect, but because it has the capacity to become better,” Suozzi wrote.
Striving to improve is a wonderful character trait. But Democrats have let their socialist friends and their Marxist voices and their communist acquaintances and their collectivist visions cloud their judgment, their goals, their messaging and their political quests. Today’s Democrats aren’t so much striving to improve this country as destroy it.
When they can’t accept the foundations of American Exceptionalism are those of a spirit, and seek to deny that spirit and assault anyone who dares carry it forth, then it’s clear: the love Democrats claim for this country is nothing more than a myth. You can’t truly love something you want to utterly change and replace.
• Cheryl Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com or on Twitter, @ckchumley. Listen to her podcast “Bold and Blunt” by clicking HERE. And never miss her column; subscribe to her newsletter and podcast by clicking HERE. Her latest book, “God-Given Or Bust: Defeating Marxism and Saving America With Biblical Truths,” is available by clicking HERE.
Follow the author
Please read our comment policy before commenting.