On Friday, January 20, 2017, Donald Trump was officially sworn-in as the 45th President of the United States. As is always the case on this historical and amazing day, the new president gave an inauguration address to the nation he is now responsible for leading.
Many times, such speeches have been memorable for the way they communicate the vision and hope of the new president for America. And while Trump’s address contained a few memorable lines, as a whole it was, as Ben Shapiro would observe, “…a populist brew of government interventionism, patriotic rhetoric, law and order toughness, protectionist economics, and isolationist foreign policy. It was politically brilliant, and it had little to do with conservatism.”
And personally, this is the reason I despair over what America will become during the next four years.
Trump’s address was not, despite what Chris Matthews at MSNBC would say, “Hitlerian”–it’s amazing how it’s OK to make Nazi references now that Obama is out of office, isn’t it?–nor was it “revolutionary,” as John Zogby proclaimed.
The Donald’s speech was nothing more than his campaign speeches warmed up in the microwave of Progressivism. While Mark Levin points out the similarities between Trump and Teddy Roosevelt, I see a bit of Teddy’s cousin, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, when Trump stated in his address:
“At the center of this movement is a crucial conviction, that a nation exists to serve its citizens. Americans want great schools for their children, safe neighborhoods for their families and good jobs for themselves. These are just and reasonable demands of righteous people and a righteous public.”
Compare Trump’s words from his inauguration speech to the goals of FDR’s “Second Bill of Rights” introduced in his 1944 State of the Union address:
- The right to a useful and remunerative job in the industries or shops or farms or mines of the Nation
- The right to earn enough to provide adequate food and clothing and recreation
- The right of every farmer to raise and sell his products at a return which will give him and his family a decent living
- The right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad
- The right of every family to a decent home
- The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health
- The right to adequate protection from the economic fears of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment
- The right to a good education
Throw in Trump’s promise to provide health insurance for all after the repeal of Obamacare, and you have everything FDR dreamed of.
Despite what The Donald might say, I don’t want government to serve me. I want it to get the heck out of my way so I can serve myself. I want great schools, but I don’t want Washington deciding what that looks like. I want safe neighborhoods, but I don’t want to surrender liberty in order to have them. And I want good jobs, but I don’t want the government providing them via budget-busting infrastructure spending.
Trump has ushered in a new era in American politics, and the GOP is ready and willing to advance his nationalist agenda. Meanwhile, Constitutional Conservatives should remember this quote from Queen Amidala in the Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith movie:
David Leach is the owner of The Strident Conservative, your source for opinion that’s politically incorrect and always “right.” His articles can also be found on RedState.com.
His daily radio commentary is nationally syndicated with Salem Radio Network and can be heard on stations across America.
