In contrast to Donald Trump’s red ball cap with the logo stating “Make America Great Again”, we have Bernie Sanders who over the weekend was seen stating that America should strive for greatness under his presidency, while denying that America has ever been great or worthy of praise. This opinion of the ordinariness of America and its non-exceptional place in world history would come as a great surprise to all of the Europeans who gave thanks to the liberating Americans in World War II for saving them from the fascism of Hitler and the looming threat of the Communism of Stalin, and to the Chinese who were protected by American forces from Japanese attacks in World War II. It would also come as a shock to all legally naturalized citizens who had to work hard and wait in line to become American citizens, and who are very thankful to be here and not in whatever hellhole they originally came from.
I will, however, agree with a limited and very specific version of Mr. Sanders’ negative opinion of America: the last seven years of Barack Obama’s administration have seen a stark reduction of everything that has historically made America exceptional and great, and this is what Donald Trump wants to reverse in order to make America great again. The fault that is hindering this great nation is not with America, it’s with our president who insists on “fundamentally transforming America” from the greatness it has always enjoyed to the mediocrity and the illegal and unconstitutional behavior we see coming out of Washington on a daily basis.
But to the likes of Bernie Sanders, any people who are free and able to achieve their own prosperity and success in life are an abused people, and only his socialism, where all possessions in the hands of the citizens were provided by the government, are people truly free.
What would it be like to elect a president who thinks that America is bad and has never done anything right or good or commendable? Just look at Barack Obama: His previously referenced plan to “fundamentally transform America” is a statement that, in his opinion, America needs a total course adjustment because the nation is, and has always been, headed in the wrong direction. At present, with Obama in the Oval Office, I agree that we are headed for a steep cliff. Prior to Obama’s arrival we had policy troubles, but they didn’t rise to the level of the destruction of the nation, as Obama’s debt, joblessness, societal division and illegal immigration are foisting on us.
I like Trump’s Make America Great Again slogan, and believe that electing someone with that opinion of our nation is someone we should prefer over an aged socialist like Bernie, who honeymooned in the workers’ paradise of the Soviet Union, despises his own nation and would just be an extension of our existing troubles; or Hillary, who, as Secretary of State, sold government favors to foreign officials in exchange for donations to her “charity”. And don’t forget the casual way Hillary dealt with secure documents, whether on her email server or in any other form of transmission. If she were president all of our nations’ sensitive information would be available to the highest bidder.
