OPINION:
As America celebrates 250 years of freedom, a growing movement on the left is trying to convince Americans that our history is shameful, that our economic system is oppressive and that our founding principles must be replaced.
That is the fight in front of us. Do we still believe in the ideas that built this country, or are we going to let a new generation of socialists tell Americans that our greatness is something to apologize for?
That question is no longer theoretical.
The communist left is no longer hiding. Marxist candidates are winning primaries. New York nominee Darializa Avila Chevalier called America “a f——— disgrace” and joked about wiping her hands on the American flag.
Colorado nominee Melat Kiros has publicly described Sept. 11, 2001, and Oct. 7, 2023, as “inevitable.” Ms. Kiros and Ms. Chevalier are self-described democratic socialists.
The people who once whispered about “fundamentally transforming” America are now demanding it in broad daylight.
They do not want to improve America. They want to remake it into something it was never meant to be. That should alarm every citizen who understands history.
Marxism is not a fresh idea. It is one of the most destructive and oppressive political ideologies ever forced on human beings.
Wherever communism has taken power, it has brought misery, poverty, censorship, fear and death. It begins with promises about fairness. It ends with the state controlling your speech, your property, your work, your faith and your future.
America was built on the exact opposite premise.
Our rights come from God, not government. Power comes from the people, not the state. The purpose of government is to protect liberty, not manage every corner of human life. That belief created more prosperity, more opportunity and a better quality of life than any system in history.
Capitalism gave ordinary people the chance to build extraordinary lives. It lifted families out of poverty and rewarded hard work and invention. It allowed a farmer, a factory worker, a waitress, a mechanic or a small-business owner to build something better for the next generation. That is the American story.
The socialist story is different. It teaches resentment, punishes success and replaces gratitude with grievance. It teaches young Americans that the country that has given more people more freedom than any other civilization in history is somehow the problem.
Too many Democrats have made peace with that poison.
According to a Gallup poll, only 14% of Democrats say they are extremely proud to be American. Think about that. As the greatest country on earth celebrates its 250th birthday, a major political party is led by people who can barely bring themselves to say they are proud of it.
That is not normal. It is not healthy. And it is far from harmless.
When leaders stop loving America, they stop defending our institutions. They undermine the police, weaken the border and turn schools into ideological training grounds. They excuse waste and fraud because bloated programs and taxpayer-funded handouts feed the political machine that keeps them in power.
They attack the free market system that made America bountiful enough to help more people than any other nation on earth.
House Republicans will not let these antagonists speak for Americans. We are not embarrassed by America. We are fighting for it.
All these fights lead to the same question: Who runs this country? The people or the state? Free citizens or bureaucrats? Workers or politicians?
House Republicans know the answer.
America’s next 250 years will not be secured by apologizing for our Founding, surrendering to Marxists or pretending that socialism is just another policy preference. It will be secured by defending the principles that made this country worth celebrating in the first place.
Freedom. Faith. Family. Work. Law and order. Free enterprise. Limited government. Peace through strength.
These ideas built America. They can carry us through the next 250 years, but only if we have the courage to defend them.
Defending these principles means choosing leaders who will protect them. It means teaching them to the next generation and refusing to let radicals redefine what America stands for.
The U.S. is not perfect; it never has been. Yet our founding principles gave us something no socialist system ever could: the ability to correct our failures without destroying the country itself. That is what the radicals do not understand.
You do not save America by hating it. You do not help working people by killing the system that gives them opportunity. You do not build a better future by tearing down the freest, strongest, most generous nation mankind has ever known.
House Republicans are not offering an apology tour. We are proud of this country and grateful for the generations that built it, and we are ready to fight anyone who thinks socialism, Marxism or anti-American radicalism should define what comes next.
The first 250 years were paid for by patriots. The next 250 must be defended by them.
• Rep. Lisa McClain represents Michigan’s 9th Congressional District and is chairwoman of the House Republican Conference.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.