Trump Uses Mount Rushmore Speech to Deliver Divisive Culture War Message

[CoffeeCatholic]

I figure it’s not so much what’s being said as who is saying it. wink There is a popular ecard that’s been around for years that basically says "once you dislike someone, everything they say or do is offensive. Like, “look how she’s eating that cracker! What a ______!”

 

[LeafByNiggle]

Instead of actually reading, or quoting, from the Presidents speech you quote an opinion from the NYT.

That is actually what youve got here.

Opinion, from someone who hates Trump.

You don’t have to go to the New York Times to confirm the story. You can get the quotes straight off of the official white house website:
Trump:

Our nation is witnessing a merciless campaign to wipe out our history, defame our heroes, erase our values, and indoctrinate our children.

There is no doubt in anyone’s minds who he is talking about there.
Trump:

One of their political weapons is “Cancel Culture” — driving people from their jobs, shaming dissenters, and demanding total submission from anyone who disagrees. This is the very definition of totalitarianism, and it is completely alien to our culture and our values, and it has absolutely no place in the United States of America. This attack on our liberty, our magnificent liberty, must be stopped, and it will be stopped very quickly. We will expose this dangerous movement, protect our nation’s children, end this radical assault, and preserve our beloved American way of life.

Likewise, he is again attacking his political enemies.
Trump:

In our schools, our newsrooms, even our corporate boardrooms, there is a new far-left fascism that demands absolute allegiance.

Now we see that attack on the news media and demonizing mention of the very political term “left”.
Trump:

Make no mistake: this left-wing cultural revolution is designed to overthrow the American Revolution.

Now Trump even dropped the qualifier of “far” on “left”. Apparently the whole left wing is now the enemy. Is there any doubt yet that this is a campaign speech?
Trump:

To make this possible, they are determined to tear down every statue, symbol, and memory of our national heritage. That is why I am deploying federal law enforcement to protect our monuments, arrest the rioters, and prosecute offenders to the fullest extent of the law.

Now we see overt attack on the political movement against certain statues. More politics. Apparently the audience gets it. At this point they burst into chants:
audience:

Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

See? Even the audience present there sees it as a re-election campaign, in case anyone still has any doubts.
Trump:

The violent mayhem we have seen in the streets of cities that are run by liberal Democrats, in every case, is the predictable result of years of extreme indoctrination and bias in education, journalism, and other cultural institutions.

OK, now he denigrates Democrats, and renews his attack on the media and the educational institutions to boot.

So it is clear that Trump did, as he always does, politicizing every event he holds, even the celebration of the National Birthday of July 4th.

 

[dscath]

Ya know, let the . . . man have is day in the sun, whether in North Dakota or D.C…I’m not so sure that the Dakota thing wasn’t typical Trump rally, but in D. C., I’m thinking its quite a mix of people attending; some to celebrate him, but many more to celebrate independence day…in the end, his party, or our nation’s party isn’t going to have much impact on election results.

As my dad used to tell my mom, "Don’t worry about the weight you gain between Thanksgiving and New Years, but between New Years and the next Thanksgiving…voters are not going to judge POTUS on what he did between Independence day and Election Day, but what he did between Inauguration Day and Election day four years later.

. . . .

 

[Boatswain2PA]

Likewise, he is again attacking his political enemies.

Which is what politicians do. But its only “Dark and divisive”, or “scary” when a Republican does it.

Now we see that attack on the news media and demonizing mention of the very political term “left”.

Yep, the ones who attack him, and every Republican or conservative, every day.

Now we see overt attack on the political movement against certain statues.

Or…we see a President who will DO HIS JOB and enforce the laws written and passed by the legislature.

 

[LeafByNiggle]

LeafByNiggle:

Likewise, he is again attacking his political enemies.

Which is what politicians do.

Not at non-political events. That is the whole point. It is expected that Trump would slam the Democrats at his political rallies. It is not expected or proper for him to do it at 4th of July Celebration or a Boy Scouts of America gathering or any number of other non-political events that Trump has turned devisive.

 

[LeafByNiggle]

but thats because you are, I believe, a far-lefty who sees America for her faults instead of loving her despite her faults.

Often what people will do who cannot support their point on its own merits is turn to name-calling on their opponents. We see that illustrated right here.

 

[JonNC]

Your graph is an accurate representation of where different ideologies fall on the “authoritarianism” spectrum, but not so much in identifying them with left/right ideologies. Conservatism is ultimately about conserving something, and in the political world that something is social order and hierarchy.

In this case individual rights and limited government. The progressive movement is about the opposite.

Communism is a liberal ideology

Liberal means liberty. “ Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on liberty, consent of the governed and equality before the law.”
Communism is the polar opposite of that.

Fascism is conservative because it involves rigid enforcement of existing social order (i.e. extreme nationalism) typically advertised as a return to traditional values.

Fascism, regarding liberty, is as leftist as communism, in that it, like communism, hold government power at primacy over individual rights and limited government.

There is little difference, when it comes to individual rights vs government power, between communism and fascism, which is why the are both on the authoritarian left.

Liberals are attracted to anarchy because it represents an abolition of social hierarchies and structure. Conservatives (at least in the US) believe we would be returning to the nation’s earlier ideals of self-rule/extreme preservation of individual liberty.

Liberals are attracted to an active government, with the preservation of individual rights to a good degree. Conservatives even more so. Libertarians move closer to the extreme on limiting government with anarchy on the far right.

 

[GKMotley]

"…The whole modern world has divided itself into Conservatives and Progressives. The business of Progressives is to go on making mistakes. The business of Conservatives is to prevent mistakes from being corrected.

“The Blunders of Our Parties”, Illustrated London News, April 19, 1924. In G.K. CHESTERTON, COLLECTED WORKS, Vol XXXIII: THE ILLUSTRATED LONDON NEWS 1923-1925, p. 313.

 

[Nepperhan]

It unites all Americans who do not believe the nation should be torn down.

No, it actually was specifically a “Us against them” speech. Exactly what we did NOT need right now.

 

[Nepperhan]

Its what politicians do.

Speaking out about court decisions is different from declaring opposition to a whole set of people.

Will you ponder this? We don’t need MORE divisiveness now. Don’t need it. I don’t care who did what in 1902, we got a problem here and now ,folks. We need leadership and calming right now.

 

[JapaneseKappa]

I do not call you a lefty to denigrate or hurt any fragile feelings, just describing your obvious political leanings fro. your posts here.

Trump did not just call people leftists. He said:

Make no mistake. This left-wing cultural revolution is designed to overthrow the American Revolution. In so doing they would destroy the very civilization that rescued billions from poverty, disease, violence, and hunger, and that lifted humanity to new heights of achievement, discovery, and progress.

No person who remains quiet at the destruction of this resplendent heritage can possibly lead us to a better future. The radical ideology attacking our country advances under the banner of social justice, but in truth, it would demolish both justice and society. It would transform justice into an instrument of division and vengeance and it would turn our free and inclusive society into a place of a repression, domination, and exclusion.

But I understand why you are trying to make it sound like your critics are just upset at calling spades spades. It is because the speech is blatantly divisive, and you’ve decided this cannot be so. The only way to salvage the situation is to pretend that anyone not with Trump is “far-left” and therefore doesn’t count as a real American who deserves to be united with.

 

[JonNC]

JonNC:

It unites all Americans who do not believe the nation should be torn down.

No, it actually was specifically a “Us against them” speech. Exactly what we did NOT need right now.

Us - those who support and believe in the good this country stands for, the basic principle of individual rights, and the desire to continue to fix where we have failed to live up to those principles.
Them- those who don’t.

 

[LeafByNiggle]

I do not call you a lefty to denigrate or hurt any fragile feelings, just describing your obvious political leanings fro. your posts here.

(with a smile) I am not the least bit hurt by this specific name or by name-calling in general on an anonymous forum like this. The reason to avoid name calling is not because it might hurt someone’s feelings. The reason is that it conveys an inability to present one’s point in a compelling manner. I’m just trying to help you be a better debater, just like Ender helped me.

 

[Pattylt]

Us - those who support and believe in the good this country stands for, the basic principle of individual rights, and the desire to continue to fix where we have failed to live up to those principles.
Them- those who don’t.

I agree with the “us” statement but I don’t agree with Trump on many issues nor his job so far as president. In his speech, I heard him calling me a far leftist fascist when I am not at all…I just don’t think Trump has done a marvelous job. I don’t agree with violence and rioting. I do agree with those that were peacefully protesting. I think many confederate statues need to come down. I don’t agree that they should be toppled by a mob. I think racism and police brutality need to be addressed. I don’t think rioting or threatening police officers is the way to accomplish it.

I think Trump wants to shove me into a box that I don’t fit in and he wants to define the entire democrat party into that box, too. There was nothing unifying in his speech. It felt like if I don’t support him, I have no reason to consider myself American. Well, Happy 4th of July!

 

[Boatswain2PA]

am not the least bit hurt by this specific name or by name-calling in general on an anonymous forum like this. The reason to avoid name calling is not because it might hurt someone’s feelings. The reason is that it conveys an inability to present one’s point in a compelling manner. I’m just trying to help you be a better debater, just like Ender helped me.

Good,!

Using descriptors, or 'name calling" as you call it, can help make one’s point. And I’m not up for debating with all of it’s rules, etc,. Would much prefer a simple discussion of ideas.

 

[Boatswain2PA]

I heard him calling me a far leftist fascist when I am not at all

Why do you feel that he called YOU a far leftist fascist?

I don’t agree with violence and rioting. I agree with those peacefully protesting that the police are out of control in this country, with too much power and too little oversight. I too think many confederate statues need to come down. None should come down by a mob. And I think racism and police brutality need to be ENDED, but rioting/threatening police are not the way to accomplish that.

I certainly don’t feel he called ME a far leftist fascist for these beliefs. What makes you think he (or anyone) would count YOU as one?

 

[JonNC]

In his speech, I heard him calling me a far leftist fascist when I am not at all…I just don’t think Trump has done a marvelous job

Provide the quote, please.

I don’t agree with violence and rioting. I do agree with those that were peacefully protesting. I think many confederate statues need to come down. I don’t agree that they should be toppled by a mob. I think racism and police brutality need to be addressed. I don’t think rioting or threatening police officers is the way to accomplish it.

I generally agree.
On peaceful protesting, I defend the right, I may or may not agree with the cause.
None of this makes you a leftist fascist.

I think Trump wants to shove me into a box that I don’t fit in and he wants to define the entire democrat party into that box, too.

By your interpretation, I’m in that box, too.
I just don’t think your interpretation is correct.

 

[Pattylt]

What makes you think he (or anyone) would count YOU as one?

When he included the entire Democrat Party In his speech.

 

[Ender]

No, it actually was specifically a “Us against them” speech.

In a sense you are right: there is an “us against them” situation in the country now. That’s what the riots and cancel culture is all about. That group who would tear down our country and presumably remake it in their image, and those who would preserve it. To identify that divide is not to create or exacerbate it, but to clearly identify the issue and call for people to understand just how serious the situation is.

We can choose between the government offered by the mayors of Seattle and Minneapolis in allowing and even facilitating the riots, and the approach offered by the sheriff in Florida who said he would deputize every person who legally possessed a gun if that was necessary to prevent looting and keep the peace.

The choice is between those who see Mt. Rushmore as a monument to some of the great Americans of the past, and those who see it as a monument to two slave owners. This is an “us versus them” situation, and the president was not wrong in pointing that out. There is no common ground between those who revere our founders and the great men and women of the past, and those who would pull down their statues and desecrate their memories.

You may choose whichever side you prefer, but let’s not pretend that those sides do not exist, or that the only common ground is not either surrender or defeat.

 

[PaulinVA]

As far as i am concerned both Fascism and communism are far Left ideologies with the former being a break away from the latter in an attempt to update it.

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