Summary: Trump gave a good speech in Poland, speaking about traditional American themes. The pushback was dirty, the traditional response of elites to populism (anything goes to suppress populism). Compare their criticism to Trump’s words. Decide for yourself.
Trump’s opponents sling mud to attack Trump.
Serious charges against President Trump
Elites and their lackeys feel a white-hot hatred for populism, always and everywhere. Even for faux populists, as his rhetoric might arouse a desire for the real thing. Trump gave a stiring speech in Poland. See the Left attempt to stamp out any embers his words kindled in America. They are willing to say anything to achieve their ends, knowing that Americans in their tribe will believe anything that matches their political biases.
(1) “The Racial and Religious Paranoia of Trump’s Warsaw Speech” by Peter Beinart — “When the president says being Western is the essence of America’s identity, he’s in part defining America in opposition to some of its own people.” Binary is associate professor of journalism and political science at the City University of New York.
“In his speech in Poland on Thursday, Donald Trump referred 10 times to “the West” and five times to “our civilization.” His white nationalist supporters will understand exactly what he means. It’s important that other Americans do, too.”
(2) “How American Presidents Used to Speak Overseas” by James Fallows — “The president’s speech in Warsaw was notable for its seeming indifference to the American idea.”
“Our current president began his trip to Europe with a speech in Poland that minimized the role of ideals in American identity, and maximized the importance of what he called “civilization” but which boils down to ties of ethnicity and blood. …
“Trump gave grace-note nods to goals of liberty and free expression. Mainly, though, he spoke not about an expanded us but instead about us and them. He spoke repeatedly about our “heritage,” our “blood,” our “civilization,” our “ancestors” and “families,” our “will” and “way of life.” Every one of these of course has perfectly noble connotations. But combined and in practice, they amount to the way the Japanese nationalists of the early 20th century onward spoke, about the purity of “we Japanese” and the need to stick together as a tribe.”
(3) “A New Warsaw Pact” By Jamelle Bouie in Slate — “Trump’s speech in Poland defending “Western civilization” from its enemies sounded less like Reagan’s Cold War–era speeches than white nationalist rhetoric.”
There is no nice way to say this. These are despicable lies made for political effect. Read those essays for yourself, then read Trump’s speech. The following excerpt contains all the references to “the West” and “our civilization”, in red. Decide for yourself.
Transcript of President Trump’s speech in Poland (excerpt).
Krasiński Square, Warsaw, Poland, on 6 July 2017.
The signs of this friendship stand in our nation’s capital. Just steps from the White House, we’ve raised statues of men with names like Pułaski and Kościuszko. (Applause.) The same is true in Warsaw, where street signs carry the name of George Washington, and a monument stands to one of the world’s greatest heroes, Ronald Reagan. (Applause.)
And so I am here today not just to visit an old ally, but to hold it up as an example for others who seek freedom and who wish to summon the courage and the will to defend our civilization. (Applause.) The story of Poland is the story of a people who have never lost hope, who have never been broken, and who have never, ever forgotten who they are. (Applause)
AUDIENCE: Donald Trump! Donald Trump! Donald Trump! …
Thank you. You were supported in that victory over communism by a strong alliance of free nations in the West that defied tyranny. Now, among the most committed members of the NATO Alliance, Poland has resumed its place as a leading nation of a Europe that is strong, whole, and free.
A strong Poland is a blessing to the nations of Europe, and they know that. A strong Europe is a blessing to the West and to the world. (Applause.) One hundred years after the entry of American forces into World War I, the transatlantic bond between the United States and Europe is as strong as ever and maybe, in many ways, even stronger.
This continent no longer confronts the specter of communism. But today we’re in the West, and we have to say there are dire threats to our security and to our way of life. You see what’s happening out there. They are threats. We will confront them. We will win. But they are threats. (Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Donald Trump! Donald Trump! Donald Trump! …
We are fighting hard against radical Islamic terrorism, and we will prevail. We cannot accept those who reject our values and who use hatred to justify violence against the innocent.
Today, the West is also confronted by the powers that seek to test our will, undermine our confidence, and challenge our interests. To meet new forms of aggression, including propaganda, financial crimes, and cyberwarfare, we must adapt our alliance to compete effectively in new ways and on all new battlefields.
We urge Russia to cease its destabilizing activities in Ukraine and elsewhere, and its support for hostile regimes — including Syria and Iran — and to instead join the community of responsible nations in our fight against common enemies and in defense of civilization itself. (Applause.)
Finally, on both sides of the Atlantic, our citizens are confronted by yet another danger — one firmly within our control. This danger is invisible to some but familiar to the Poles: the steady creep of government bureaucracy that drains the vitality and wealth of the people. The West became great not because of paperwork and regulations but because people were allowed to chase their dreams and pursue their destinies.
Americans, Poles, and the nations of Europe value individual freedom and sovereignty. We must work together to confront forces, whether they come from inside or out, from the South or the East, that threaten over time to undermine these values and to erase the bonds of culture, faith and tradition that make us who we are. (Applause.) If left unchecked, these forces will undermine our courage, sap our spirit, and weaken our will to defend ourselves and our societies.
But just as our adversaries and enemies of the past learned here in Poland, we know that these forces, too, are doomed to fail if we want them to fail. And we do, indeed, want them to fail. (Applause.) They are doomed not only because our alliance is strong, our countries are resilient, and our power is unmatched. Through all of that, you have to say everything is true.
Our adversaries, however, are doomed because we will never forget who we are. And if we don’t forget who are, we just can’t be beaten. Americans will never forget. The nations of Europe will never forget. We are the fastest and the greatest community. There is nothing like our community of nations. The world has never known anything like our community of nations.
We write symphonies. We pursue innovation. We celebrate our ancient heroes, embrace our timeless traditions and customs, and always seek to explore and discover brand-new frontiers.
We reward brilliance. We strive for excellence, and cherish inspiring works of art that honor God. We treasure the rule of law and protect the right to free speech and free expression. (Applause.)
We empower women as pillars of our society and of our success. We put faith and family, not government and bureaucracy, at the center of our lives. And we debate everything. We challenge everything. We seek to know everything so that we can better know ourselves. (Applause.)
And above all, we value the dignity of every human life, protect the rights of every person, and share the hope of every soul to live in freedom. That is who we are. Those are the priceless ties that bind us together as nations, as allies, and as a civilization.
What we have, what we inherited from our …ancestors has never existed to this extent before. And if we fail to preserve it, it will never, ever exist again. So we cannot fail.
This great community of nations has something else in common: In every one of them, it is the people, not the powerful, who have always formed the foundation of freedom and the cornerstone of our defense. The people have been that foundation here in Poland — as they were right here in Warsaw — and they were the foundation from the very, very beginning in America.
Our citizens did not win freedom together, did not survive horrors together, did not face down evil together, only to lose our freedom to a lack of pride and confidence in our values. We did not and we will not. We will never back down. (Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Donald Trump! Donald Trump! Donald Trump! …
We have to remember that our defense is not just a commitment of money, it is a commitment of will. Because as the Polish experience reminds us, the defense of the West ultimately rests not only on means but also on the will of its people to prevail and be successful and get what you have to have. The fundamental question of our time is whether the West has the will to survive. Do we have the confidence in our values to defend them at any cost? Do we have enough respect for our citizens to protect our borders? Do we have the desire and the courage to preserve our civilization in the face of those who would subvert and destroy it? (Applause.)
We can have the largest economies and the most lethal weapons anywhere on Earth, but if we do not have strong families and strong values, then we will be weak and we will not survive. (Applause.) If anyone forgets the critical importance of these things, let them come to one country that never has. Let them come to Poland. (Applause.) And let them come here, to Warsaw, and learn the story of the Warsaw Uprising. …
The memories of those who perished in the Warsaw Uprising cry out across the decades, and few are clearer than the memories of those who died to build and defend the Jerusalem Avenue crossing. Those heroes remind us that the West was saved with the blood of patriots; that each generation must rise up and play their part in its defense — (applause) — and that every foot of ground, and every last inch of civilization, is worth defending with your life.
Our own fight for the West does not begin on the battlefield — it begins with our minds, our wills, and our souls. Today, the ties that unite our civilization are no less vital, and demand no less defense, than that bare shred of land on which the hope of Poland once totally rested. Our freedom, our civilization, and our survival depend on these bonds of history, culture, and memory.
And today as ever, Poland is in our heart, and its people are in that fight. (Applause.) Just as Poland could not be broken, I declare today for the world to hear that the West will never, ever be broken. Our values will prevail. Our people will thrive. And our civilization will triumph. (Applause.)
AUDIENCE: Donald Trump! Donald Trump! Donald Trump!
Thank you. So, together, let us all fight like the Poles — for family, for freedom, for country, and for God. Thank you. God Bless You. God bless the Polish people. God bless our allies. And God bless the United States of America.
————————————
For an analysis of the accusations about Trump’s speech see “The Atlantic Publishes All You Need to Know about the Left” by Dennis Prager at National Review — “The Left sees everything in terms of race and equates Western civilization with whiteness.”
“The second service provided by the Atlantic writers is proof that the Left loathes Western civilization and therefore has become the internal enemy of Western civilization in both America and Europe. In the Left’s eyes, the mere suggestion that Western civilization needs to be saved is, by definition, a call for the preservation of the white race. ” …
“The West’s disdain for its own values is getting increasingly strident with each passing day. President Trump is making an important and laudable effort to reverse this trend. He’s walking in good company. In an address to the Pan-American Scientific Congress in Washington, D.C., on May 10, 1940, President Franklin D. Roosevelt said, “Americans might have to become the guardian of Western culture, the protector of Christian civilization.” FDR frequently spoke about protecting both Western and Christian civilization.”
The wide acceptance of the claims about Trump’s speech is yet more evidence that we are among the most gullible people, ever. Our elites know that and exploit this weakness. But gullibility is a choice. We can do better.
Watch the speech
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It’s so obvious he’s talking about white nationalists only, because only white people live in the west. Duh!
Gawd these people make me see red. Say anything, write anything, do anything just to split us apart. Would these people rather be a part of eastern civ? If so go join em. I’ll start a progressive deadpool.
Gute,
That’s a brilliant analysis. In the future our AI journalists will reduce articles like Fallows’ to a sylogisms. Such as…
Trump wants to save Western Civ.
Only white people live in the West.
Therefore Trump is a White Nationalist.
It will also headline this analysis “today’s Left b.s.” It will just as easily write Right-wing op-eds, equally bogus. The readers’ time saved will be immense. But since we’ll all be unemployed, it won’t help.
Good thing today is my real heavy day in the gym – I’ll need it.
Ah yes, classic populism. The elites hate when you praise a NATO ally for its commitment while rebuking Russia.
The US political elites no doubt hate this even more than Trump ingratiating himself to Saudi Arabia while saber-rattling against Iran.
Tips,
I think we’re past the point where they care what Trump has done or will do Powerful forces in US elites have decided to destroy Trum — and put Pence in the White House. Whatever he does, they’ll try to twist it for use against him. This speech is a clear example.
Just because they’ll twist it for use against him doesn’t mean Trump’s FP’s been ‘populist’ just as the unhinged reaction to every anodyne thing Obama said didn’t mean he was the ‘progressive’ his fans thought of him as.
That they’re trying to pass such a healthcare bill w/o any real fear of a backlash is a much clearer indication of how little elites currently fear populism.
tps,
“doesn’t mean Trump’s FP’s been ‘populist’”
Let’s replay the tape to see what I said in the first two sentences of this post (bold emphasis added):
Trump’s populist rhetoric during the campaign was a con. He staffed his administration with standard-issue right-wingers; not a populist among them. His policy has been standard right-wing. See the posts about The Trump Years in America for documentation.