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The Obama Diaries

by Laura Ingraham

 

WHAT IS AMERICA TO ME?

There is an inspiring World War II song, “The House I Live
In,” that asks:

What is America to me? A name, a map, or a flag I see; A certain
word, democracy. What is America to me?

It’s a question we don’t consider often enough, if at all.
But today, a kind of soul searching is needed. Our understanding of
America will profoundly shape our actions—and those actions will
leave their mark on America and the rest of the world. How we see our
country and our role as citizens will either lead us to protect, defend,
and nurture her—or sit idly by as our precious heritage slips
away.

At this moment in our history, when we face so many challenges at home
and abroad, we need to consider anew this crucial question.

What is America to me?

Who are we as Americans? Who do we want to be? What traditions and
principles do we need to preserve as we move forward? What of our
American experience is worth fighting for? (And just because you might
not wear a military uniform, don’t think you are exempt from
answering that last question.) These are queries that should be pondered
by all Americans and all those who wish to be.

To me, America will always be a land of unbridled opportunity, unrivaled
beauty, and unlimited possibility. It is a place where each of us has a
shot to reach our potential. Rooted in truth, decency, and timeless
values, America is ever forward looking; constantly innovating while
inspiring the rest of the world. Echoing John Winthrop (and the Bible),
Ronald Reagan captured it best when he described America as “the
shining city on a hill.” In his farewell address, he unpacked this
vision and explained what we are, and must be, in this new
millennium:

In my mind, it was a tall, proud city built on rocks stronger than
oceans, wind-swept, God-blessed, and teeming with people of all kinds
living in harmony and peace; a city with free ports that hummed with
commerce and creativity, and if there had to be city walls, the walls
had doors and the doors were open to anyone with the will and the heart
to get here. That’s how I saw it, and see it still . . . after two
hundred years, two centuries, she still stands strong and true on the
granite ridge, and her glow has held steady no matter what storm. And
she’s still a beacon, still a magnet for all who must have
freedom, for all the pilgrims from all the lost places who are hurtling
through the darkness, toward home.

Just reading the words puts a lump in my throat. Which isn’t an
isolated occurrence. I also happen to get choked up at ball games. Not
by the game itself, but by the National Anthem. Every time I hear it
sung or see a stadium full of people with their hands over their hearts,
I feel a little tingle. Whenever I spot a veteran standing at attention
before a passing flag in a Memorial Day parade, tears inevitably well up
in my eyes. It’s not sentimentality, but an emotional reaction to
this truth: many have sacrificed for what those stars and stripes
represent, and the sacrifice continues. How can one help but be moved
and humbled by the long trail of blood and sweat that established our
“city on a hill” and defended her promise around the world?

Our challenge now, as engaged citizens, is to translate our emotions
into clear principles, practices, and habits that rise above the
political or cultural winds of the moment. What can we do, personally,
to expand the greatness of our country? What steps can we take to extend
the sacrifice of those who paid the ultimate price for our freedom to
make choices?

I believe that our work needs to begin deep within ourselves. We the
people must refine ourselves, as individuals, before we can refine our
community and our nation. No one else will do it for us. Not the
government, not the media, and certainly not the “international
community.” We are the ones who will either stand up and defend
what we know to be true, or permit others to twist and destroy the last,
best hope of mankind. What is at stake is our way of life, our ideals,
and our very future.

The house I live in, A plot of earth, a street, The grocer and the
butcher, Or the people that I meet; The children in the playground, The
faces that I see, All races and religions, That’s America to
me.

Like the first settlers in this land, people continue to come to our
shores seeking freedom. They embrace and celebrate our ideals in ways
that shame native-born Americans. The English writer G. K. Chesterton,
in his work What I Saw in America, put in this way: “[T]he
great American experiment . . . a democracy of diverse races . . . has
been compared to a melting-pot. But even that metaphor implies that the
pot itself is of a certain shape and a certain substance; a pretty solid
substance. The melting-pot must not melt. The original shape was traced
on the lines of Jeffersonian democracy; and it will remain in that shape
until it becomes shapeless. America invites all men to become citizens;
but it implies the dogma that there is such a thing as
citizenship.”

What gives our country her “shape” is our shared, common
belief in what America is. Chesterton observed that we are the only
nation founded on a creed. That creed is found in the Declaration of
Independence, where Jefferson wrote: “ We hold these truths to be
self-evident, that all men are created equal” and “that they
are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among
these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Embracing
and advancing this vision is at the heart of what it means to be an
American. We are not observers in this country, but participants.
Citizenship requires that we struggle to protect these ideals of Life,
Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. We must all do our part. But the
troubling question we face is: Do we all really believe in the American
creed?

THE DIARY OF PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA

INAUGURATION NIGHT

January 20, 2009

. . . Hell, yes, it’s the first time we’re proud to be
Americans! I can’t believe these people actually voted for me!
What a place this country is! A measly stint in the Illinois legislature
and a breath or two in the Senate, add a few groovy iconic posters and
some “Hope & Change” and . . . bingo! I am the f---ing
president! They actually bought it when I said I wanted to “form a
more perfect union.” I think Aretha was crying beneath that Easter
basket hat of hers when I said that line . . . hey, I am the perfect
union! Good looks, big brains, and a damn fine jump shot at my age.

You should have seen the way BeyoncÉ looked at me at that ball
tonight. Damn! I played it cool though. I didn’t even look back at
her. I grabbed Michelle’s hand, did a few twirls with her in that
toilet paper dress, and made my way offstage like a cool cat. They were
yelling for me to come back, but I just gave them a wave over the
shoulder. I like to leave ’em fired up and ready to go.

Pastor Jeremiah was right; to hell with “America the
Beautiful.” It’s the era of Barack the Beautiful. Long may I
reign.

Unfortunately for Americans, the leader of the United States and his
intimates have a deeply distorted view of America. Throw in unhealthy
doses of class warfare, envy, and narcissism, and the long-cherished
vision of America becomes almost unrecognizable—like Nancy Pelosi
after a long Botox session.

Leaders from George Washington to Teddy Roosevelt to Ronald Reagan
celebrated this country apart from themselves; praising her virtues, her
ideals. President Obama takes a different tack. To understand where he
is coming from and where he means to take us, it helps to look back.

In March 2008, while on the campaign trail, then-senator Obama offered
this touching salute to America: “. . . for as long as I live, I
will never forget that in no other country on earth is my story
even possible.”

No matter the topic, no matter the occasion, whenever Barack Obama is
talking, rest assured that the oration will somehow relate back to
him! His personal narrative is always in evidence. Like Rome, all
roads lead to Barry. Even America and her long, noble history must bend
to accommodate the “story” of Barack Obama. But at least he
is consistent. He always sings in the same key: Me, Me, Me, Me, Me . . .

Michelle and Barack Obama have a truly lamentable track record when it
comes to celebrating America as the greatest country on the face of the
earth. Probably because they don’t believe it’s true. Now,
for those who think I am being petty—with apologies to the
president—let me be clear: I’ve been around politics long
enough to know, if you want to understand what a person really thinks
and feels, don’t listen to the scripted speech. Listen when they
speak off the cuff. Listen for what they don’t say. The truth is
far more likely to come tumbling out when the teleprompter is off. And
it has tumbled out.

On February 18, 2008, at a campaign rally in Madison, Wisconsin,
Michelle Obama uttered the now-infamous proclamation about America:
“For the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my
country—and not just because Barack has done well, but because I
think people are hungry for change. And I have been desperate to see our
country moving in that direction and not just feeling so alone in my
frustration and disappointment.”

“For the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my
country . . .”

Can you imagine reaching the age of forty-four and never having been
proud of your country? Michelle Obama couldn’t find one American
virtue or laudable quality that stirred pride in her heart in all those
years? Worse, she added that she was frustrated and disappointed in the
country. Like her husband, the First Lady saw no objective goodness in
America until they arrived on the scene.

During the 2008 campaign, Lauren Collins profiled Michelle Obama for the
New Yorker. She wrote: “[Michelle] Obama begins with a
broad assessment of life in America in 2008, and life is not good:
we’re a divided country, we’re a country that is ‘just
downright mean, ’ we are ‘guided by fear, ’
we’re a nation of cynics, sloths, and complacents.”

I have often tried to figure out why it is that
liberals—especially Ivy League–educated liberals—have
such a hard time loving America unconditionally. Whether it is a
multimillionaire actor like Sean Penn or a business tycoon
ÉmigrÉ like George Soros, our country’s most
privileged liberal elites seem genetically predisposed to think the
worst about the country that helped them achieve their wealth and
celebrity. Why is this? What other country on the planet is better,
freer, more beautiful than ours? (Both would probably scoff at the
previous sentence for its “mindless flag-waving
sentimentality.”)

Surely, as individuals, we can be critical of our political
leadership— Lord knows I am—yet at the same time love our
country and be grateful for the sacrifices of our forefathers. While I
can certainly understand one having a dim view of certain political
figures or events, I cannot understand the overall negative, cynical
view shared by so many Obama boosters. You know the mind-set—the
type who reflexively feel the need to remind the world that America has
screwed up royally.

For them, America is better now only because it has embraced the Obamas.
But by any measure, America is a great country. She was magnificent and
set apart before the Obamas came along and will continue to be
“the shining city on the hill” long after they are gone.

THE DIARY OF FIRST LADY MICHELLE OBAMA

THE WHITE HOUSE

January 21, 2009

I’ve got to tell you, making history is exhausting. After the
parade and the balls and the Jonas Brothers’ drop-by, I am now
stuck in this drafty, white mausoleum of a house, arranging bedrooms!
I’d like to see Barack get five people situated in a new house
overnight.

This morning, I’m sitting with Mama at the breakfast table in
my robe, just worn out, and Barack walks in all spiffed up, giving me
that “The First Lady have big plans today?” jazz. I threw my
newspaper down, looked him straight in the eye, and said, “Listen,
buddy, you go arrange the girls’ bedrooms and I’ll go meet
with the national security team, okay? Believe me, that’s easier.
And I probably know more about national security than you!”

He didn’t say a word. When he tried to quietly slink away, Mama
gave him the evil eye and said, real loud, ‘This First
Lady’s got bigger plans than you’ll ever have, string
bean!” Even the servants were laughing.

I begged those Bushes to let us stay at Blair House, the White House
guest residence, after the election and bring our things in slowly. But
noooo! They had “dignitaries to accommodate.” So we were
cooped up like refugees over at the Hay-Adams. (Do you know they
didn’t even have conditioner in the bathroom?) The Bushes should
have gotten the hell out of this house in November after the election
and let us move in. We’re historic! Mrs. Literacy and Mr.
Illiterate should have gone to a hotel. Didn’t they already have
their eight years?

After I unpack Sasha’s room, I’ve got to get dressed and
go to some damn military thing. Just what I need today. All that
flag-waving, hillbilly music, hand-on-the-heart crap. To think that for
the next four years I have to ooh and aah over the
“sacrifice” of people who never graduated college . . . You
want to know what sacrifice is? Giving up a cushy, six-figure, hospital
board salary to play second fiddle to a man who still leaves his dirty
socks in the middle of the bedroom floor.

But Desiree says, as First Lady, I’ve got to distance myself
from the “first time I’m proud of my country”
comments. So here I go: hugging and saluting and singing “Yankee
Doodle Dandy”—again! Desiree picked out a blue sheath dress
with a stars-and-stripes bow on the front. And I’ve got to say, my
arms look fine in it. If I play my cards right, I might get an American
Legion magazine cover out of this thing.

The place I work in, The worker by my side, The little town or city
Where my people lived and died. The howdy and the handshake, The air and
feeling free, And the right to speak my mind out, That’s America
to me.

How we speak of our country, how we treat the symbols of our freedom,
the gratitude we show to our military and veterans—all of this
defines who we are as Americans. Words and gestures, even the things we
wear, express in a concrete way what’s in our hearts. A big part
of patriotism is showing everyone we meet that we believe in the
American creed—that we are proud of this country and her history,
regardless of her shortcomings. President Obama has disparaged such
displays. As a senator and presidential candidate, he made a point of
removing his flag lapel pin in 2007.

“The truth is that right after 9/11, I had a pin. Shortly after
9/11, particularly because as we’re talking about the Iraq War,
that became a substitute for, I think, true patriotism, which is
speaking out on issues that are of importance to our national
security,” Obama said in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, that year. “I
decided I won’t wear that pin on my chest. Instead I’m going
to try to tell the American people what I believe, what will make this
country great, and hopefully, that will be a testimony to my
patriotism.”

So Obama is going to tell the American people “what will make this
country great.” You’d swear he was a coach positioning
himself to save a losing team—as if the country isn’t great
now, but after it adopts his agenda, it will be spectacular. No
wonder he would later attempt to, in his words, “fundamentally
transform the United States of America.”

Obama is simply wrong. Our patriotism, our devotion to country, should
never be swayed by the passing policies of the government. I agree with
Mark Twain, who wrote, “Patriotism is supporting your country all
the time, and your government when it deserves it.” I would argue
that the lapel pin and displays like it are an outgrowth of our
patriotism, tangible signs of faith in America.

Obama’s lapel-pin comments drew a firestorm of criticism,
prompting him to further dismiss the importance of such displays in
(ironically) Independence, Iowa: “After a while, you start
noticing people wearing a lapel pin, but not acting very patriotic. Not
voting to provide veterans with resources that they need. Not voting to
make sure that disability payments are coming out on time. My attitude
is that I’m less concerned about what you’re wearing on your
lapel than what’s in your heart.”

Who knew that among Obama’s many gifts was the reading of hearts?
To defuse the controversy, Obama began wearing the flag pin throughout
the campaign and continues wearing it today. What, then, does the pin on
his lapel actually mean, given his admitted feelings?

Barack Obama’s flawed thinking about America and how to present
her to the world has now bled into his presidency, with disastrous
results.

WHY WE’RE GREAT

Born of our revolutionary spirit and belief in the Almighty, America has
long seen itself as exceptional—a people and a land set apart.
Alexis de Tocqueville was the first to call America
“exceptional.” But the principle has been enlarged and
confirmed by our astounding growth and leadership in the world for more
than two centuries.

The Encyclopedia of American Foreign Policy describes American
exceptionalism as “a term used to describe the belief that the
United States is an extraordinary nation with a special role to play in
human history; a nation that is not only unique but also
superior.” Our national pride and confidence come from this notion
of American exceptionalism. It gives America the strength to seek out
those things that are in her best interests and in the best interests of
those in other lands.

If you have traveled outside the country for any length of time, you
know there is nothing like coming home to the United States. That
doesn’t mean there aren’t problems (like going through
customs), but when one returns from a trip abroad, the marks of our
exceptionalism are more apparent than ever by contrast. In the power of
our industry. In the self-reliant, independent spirit of our people. The
generosity of Americans. Their concern for their fellow man and the
common good. These are the qualities that define us. (Just look at the
outpouring of support for the people of Haiti during their recent
tragedies—in the midst of a recession, I might add.) The proof of
America’s exceptionalism is in evidence for anyone with eyes to
see it.

The things I see about me, The big things and the small, The little
corner newsstand, And the house a mile tall; The wedding and the
churchyard, The laughter and the tears, And the dream that’s been
a growing For more than two hundred years.

It is obvious from our founding documents that the Framers considered
America exceptional as well. They saw us as a people led by Providence,
rooted in the ideals of equality under the law and freedom for all.
Somewhere along the way, President Obama must have missed that lesson in
history class. When asked about American exceptionalism at the NATO
conference in April 2009, the leader of the free world said:

I believe in American exceptionalism, just as I suspect that the Brits
believe in British exceptionalism and the Greeks believe in Greek
exceptionalism. . . . Now, the fact that I am very proud of my country
and I think that we’ve got a whole lot to offer the world does not
lessen my interest in recognizing the value and wonderful qualities of
other countries, or recognizing that we’re not always going to be
right, or that other people may have good ideas, or that in order for us
to work collectively, all parties have to compromise and that includes
us.

Inspiring, isn’t it?

Just one day before, at the G-20 summit on April 2, 2009, in London, the
president offered this nugget: “I do not buy into the notion that
America can’t lead in the world, but it is very important for us
to be able to forge partnerships as opposed to dictating
solutions.”

Notice the language: in Obama’s worldview, before he came on the
scene America was a dictator, a bully—“downright
mean.” This perspective serves only to dilute the moral authority
and influence of the United States and embolden the world’s true
dictators. Obama thinks he’s being the sophisticated anti-Bush by
offering foreign nations greater opportunities for “dialogue and
understanding.” But, of course, the result is the diminishment of
America’s leverage and strength in the world. No wonder they all
think they can roll us now.

Throughout the NATO and the G-20 summits of 2009, Europe set the ground
rules and led the way. Which was hardly a surprise. It was exactly what
the president desired. When he first arrived at the G-20, he told
British prime minister Gordon Brown that he had come “to listen,
not to lecture.” At a press conference with German chancellor
Angela Merkel at the start of the NATO summit, Obama announced: “I
don’t come bearing grand designs . . . I’m here to
listen, to share ideas, and to jointly, as one of many NATO allies, help
shape our vision for the future.”

This practical repudiation of American exceptionalism was the capper of
what might be called the Obama Contrition Tour. If the president’s
feet are on foreign soil, chances are that at some point during the
trip, he will apologize for America. When he speaks of the United
States, he speaks as if he is somehow above America. He is the detached
Messiah analyzing but unmarred by this deeply flawed country. He is in
America, but not quite of it. Victor Davis Hanson has dubbed Obama the
first postnational global citizen. Which sounds about right when you
hear him speak overseas.

At a town hall meeting in Strasbourg, France, on April 3, 2009, he
remarked: “In dealing with terrorism, we can’t lose sight of
our values and who we are. That’s why I closed Guantanamo.
That’s why I made very clear that we will not engage in certain
interrogation practices. I don’t believe that there is a
contradiction between our security and our values. And when you start
sacrificing your values, when you lose yourself, then over the long term
that will make you less secure.”

Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa . . .

In Trinidad and Tobago, on April 17, 2009: “I know that promises
of partnership have gone unfulfilled in the past, and that trust has to
be earned over time. While the United States has done much to promote
peace and prosperity in the hemisphere, we have at times been
disengaged, and at times we sought to dictate our terms.”

Given his confessional posture in foreign lands, the president and
Michelle might ask their dressers to select some new fashion accessories
next time they travel abroad: sackcloth and ashes.

His recitation of America’s purported sins creates an equivalency
between the United States and nations that do not begin to approach our
economic, military, or cultural strength. This idle chatter to win the
affections of the aggrieved in the end diminishes America. As described
by the president, the United States seems like just another defective
member of the League of Nations.

In an interview with Fox News in December 2009, former vice president
Dick Cheney could barely disguise his disgust with Obama’s
international confessions as well as the president’s habit of
bowing to foreign princes:

I think most of us believe, and most presidents believe, and talk about
the truly exceptional nature of America: Our history, where we come
from, our belief in our constitutional values and principles, our
advocacy for freedom and democracy. . . . There’s never been a
nation like the United States of America in world history.

And yet when you have a president who goes around and bows to his host
and then proceeds to apologize profusely for the United States, I find
that deeply disturbing. That says to me, this is a guy who doesn’t
fully understand or share that view of American exceptionalism that I
think most of us believe in.

President Obama’s words and example have led Americans down a path
of self-loathing and have taught the world to disrespect our nation and
our history. When then–Prime Minister Gordon Brown, following a
series of meetings with the president of the United States, announces,
“The old Washington consensus is over; I think a new world order
is emerging with the foundation of a new progressive era of
international cooperation,” it’s time to start worrying. The
tragedy is, America was not overwhelmed by other nations but was in fact
cut down by her own leader and served up on a platter.

THE DIARY OF PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA

THE OVAL OFFICE

April 21, 2009

8:30 a.m. Just finished reading Open Veins of Latin America: Five
Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent, the book that Hugo Chavez
handed me at the Americas Summit last week. President Chavez inscribed
it: “For Obama with affection.” Where’s the president
of the United States part? Or “the most honorable”? And all
he’s got for me is affection? Couldn’t he have spared a
“with love” or “in adoration” or “in
humble homage to . . .”? Affection. That’s cold.

But I’ve got to say, his manners and diversity of shirt color
aside, the man can select a good read. It is criminal how the United
States and all of Western Europe raped and plundered Latin America. (I
just told Jon [Favreau] to work some of this material into my next
apology when I’m down in South America.) Reading the way the U.S.
abused the continent, it’s easy to understand why Hugo and Fidel
go off at times. And Hugo particularly gets a bad rap. He has instituted
some sweeping reforms in Venezuela that make a lot of sense. His
initiatives to nationalize energy and take control of his
country’s broadcast entities are sound policies. If only I could
get Roger Ailes to embrace this approach.

Hell, if Bill O’Reilly worked for the FCC I’d go on the
Factorevery night. Maybe even broadcast an Obama Factor from the Oval
Office—no guests, just me telling the American people what’s
wrong with this country and laying out my solutions.

That’s another thing Hugo does right. He’s got his own TV
show, and since he controls the stations, he talks as long as he likes.
When you’re president, there’s nothing more important than
connecting with your followers. No one should obstruct that
communication. What we really need is an Obama Network. I’ll show
them what the most trusted name in news looks like. Move over, Anderson
Cooper. I’m going to get Gibbs working on that right
away.

Part of this president’s reluctance to celebrate America can
likely be traced to his background. Barack Obama was the son of an
African father he barely knew. Raised by a free-spirited mother who
carted him off to Indonesia for a number of years, Barry Obama never
really fit in. He was a biracial American in the Far East who attended a
Catholic school while being raised as a Muslim. The circumstances no
doubt confused the boy about the world and his place in it. At ten, he
returned to Hawaii, where he lived with his grandparents. This journey
would disorient anyone—never mind a child whose friends claim he
had abandonment issues and struggled with racial intolerance. If you
want to know what the man thinks of his country, find out what the child
was taught. This doesn’t only apply to President Obama, but to all
of us.

RESHAPING AMERICA IN THE CLASSROOM AND THE CULTURE

Our perceptions of America are not only shaped by our family but also by
what we learn in the classroom and in our culture. Increasingly, the
views of young Americans are being shaped by teachers and textbooks
packing an agenda.

The words of old Abe Lincoln, Of Jefferson and Paine, Of Washington
and Jackson And the tasks that still remain; The little bridge at
Concord, Where Freedom’s fight began, Our Gettysburg and Midway
And the story of Bataan.

If you asked most Americans to cite the importance of any of the battles
recalled in that lyric, you would likely get blank stares. A good deal
of the blame rests on the American history textbooks forced upon the
young. There was a time when graduates were familiar with figures like
John Adams, Alexander Hamilton, Frederick Douglass, and Eli Whitney. But
imparting the stories of great American lives and celebrating the spirit
of this land was not enough for some academics. In time, a revisionist
taint seeped into textbooks. And politically correct agendas came to the
fore.

Textbooks began to feature the full litany of American sins. Suddenly
slavery and the harsh treatment of Native Americans became the
centerpiece of U.S. history. The glories of our country’s
past—the daring battles, the idealists who fought for their
dreams—were soon edged out entirely. Dr. Diane Ravitch described
the twisted history created within American public schools as “an
adversary culture that emphasized the nation’s warts and
diminished its genuine accomplishments.” This is a long-term
tragedy—because not only does it perpetuate historical stupidity;
it also undermines America herself.

These highly prejudiced textbooks lay waste to our common stories and
make America out to be the bad guy. As I mentioned earlier, Americans
are not held together by race or blood, but by a shared belief in the
founding principles of the republic. By focusing on the grievances of
isolated racial or social groups, these books don’t draw us
together as Americans, but drive us apart.

Frances Fitzgerald, in her book America Revised, writes:
“The message of the texts would be that Americans have no common
history, no common culture, and no common values, and that membership in
a racial or cultural group constitutes the most fundamental experience
of each individual.” They also teach young people that it’s
perfectly acceptable to loathe America while taking advantage of all the
benefits of living here.

Subversive pop historians are only too happy to add to the confusion.
James Loewen, author of the bestselling Lies My Teacher Told Me:
Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong, has managed to
convince millions of Americans that what they know about their country
is probably wrong. He has made a career of spotlighting how European
settlers imported nothing but disease to the New World, and how
Americans in the South got their kicks holding community lynchings on
weekends. In 2009, he launched a new curriculum for K–12 teachers
called Teaching What Really Happened: How to Avoid the Tyranny of
Textbooks and Get Students Excited About Doing History. It could
have been called: Teaching What I Think Happened: How to Ditch
History and Get Students to Hate Their Country. It should be noted
that Loewen does, however, feature American exceptionalism in his
curriculum. He encourages educators to ask their students to identify
“two ways the U.S. is exceptional—one positive, one
negative.” He then goes on to offer his own examples:

The U.S. wound up with the smallest proportion of Native people in the
Americas (except possibly Uruguay).

The U.S. is the only nation to have fought a Civil War over slavery.

The U.S. remains the only nation ever to have used nuclear weapons on
another nation.

These facts, Loewen says, will help students grasp that
“exceptional need not always be good.” More deep thoughts
from academe.

One of Loewen’s biggest promoters was himself a master of
distorting America’s past: Howard Zinn. The Marxist author of A
People’s Historyof the United States, Zinn sought to
recast America in deep shades of red. His book became an instant
sensation and a must-read for America-haters everywhere.

This is how Zinn describes the founding of the United States of America
in his book: “Around 1776, certain important people in the English
colonies made a discovery that would prove enormously useful for the
next two hundred years. They found that by creating a nation, a symbol,
a legal unity called the United States, they could take over land,
profits, and political power from the favorites of the British
Empire.”

In Zinn’s eyes, all of U.S. history can be reduced to greedy
capitalists grabbing money and power from native peoples or the poor.
For those seeking America’s finest moments, don’t bother.
The D-day invasion is totally ignored, as is George Washington’s
farewell address. Though there is a delightful recounting of the My Lai
massacre for all you sadists out there.

Shortly before his death in early 2010, Zinn announced a new initiative
to corrupt young Americans. He too now had a K–12 curriculum to
teach kiddies the number of presidents who owned slaves and the many
ways capitalism fuels oppression.

Predictably, it is the millionaire Hollywood set that has embraced
Zinn’s catechism of hatred. Matt Damon, Bruce Springsteen, Josh
Brolin, Benjamin Bratt, and others (capitalists all) lent their voices
to a History Channel documentary based on Zinn’s ramblings called
The People Speak. It was narrated by Zinn himself and used the
power of celebrity to bring his admittedly “biased account”
of American history to the masses. I don’t know about you, but
Jasmine Guy reading a commencement address by Marian Wright Edelman is
not exactly my idea of bringing American history to life!

And don’t think that the Hollywood elites have ended their march
on America there. They clearly delight in creating movies and
documentaries to propagate their socialist dogma. (Meanwhile, where is
the film about Chairman Mao and his systematic extermination of seventy
million people? Or the exposÉ of Joseph Stalin, who is
responsible for deaths of at least thirty million?) The cinematic flop
Green Zone is a perfect example. In this Matt Damon thriller,
Zinn’s little prodigy plays a soldier determined to learn the
truth about weapons of mass destruction. Hard as he tries, little Mattie
just can’t find those WMDs. As expected, everything is blamed on
the Bush administration. The movie conveniently ignores the fact that
scads of Democrats supported the war (before they began blaming Bush for
everything) and that the intelligence agencies of other governments
indicated that WMDs were present in Iraq. Forget reality—like a
Zinn history come to life, Green Zone casts America as the
aggressor and, believe it or not, actually goes out of its way to
portray an Iraqi general in a compassionate light. No such kindness is
shown to American military leaders, but there sure are lots of
explosions.

And, apparently, stupid is as stupid does. While flogging his HBO
miniseries The Pacific, Tom Hanks made comments about America
that reveal why he should have retired after Splash. Despite his
work on behalf of World War II vets, Hanks told Time magazine:
“Back in World War II, we viewed the Japanese as ‘yellow,
slant-eyed dogs’ that believed in different gods. They were out to
kill us because our way of living was different. We, in turn, wanted to
annihilate them because they were different. Does that sound familiar,
by any chance, to what’s going on today?”

On MSNBC, Hanks described the Pacific war as a campaign of “racism
and terror.” To think that the historian Doug Brinkley had the
gall to crown Hanks “American history’s highest-ranking
professor.” Funny, I always think of him as the guy in the dress
on Bosom Buddies! Dr. Hanks will be exploring the JFK
assassination next. God help us.

THE DIARY OF VICE PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN

WASHINGTON, D.C.

January 27, 2010

Man, I am beat. It is exhausting posing behind POTUS during the State of
the Union. What a pressure cooker! I thought Justice Lido [sic] was
going to jump out of his seat when POTUS took a swipe at SCOTUS (POTUS .
. . SCOTUS . . . It rhymes!). Anyway, I have to admit, I started zoning
out when Barack went on about “the threat of nuclear
weapons.” That old saw?! (I personally do whatever I can to avoid
having to pronounce the word proliferation. My trick is that I break it
down to pro-lifer and then add the ation part. But then it sounds like
an abortion thing. Oh well.) Then just as Barack was prattling on about
some Afghan schoolgirl example (z-z-z-z-z-z), an e-mail bulletin from
Variety landed in my B-Berry. (This “vibrator” function is
amazing!) Anyway, Hollywood is abuzz about the magical new program on
the big screen—it’s called Atavan, or something. Looks like
it was hijacked by the Blue Man Group. It has apparently overtaken
Titanic as the most profitable film ever made. Very cool!

That James Cameron fellow knows his stuff. Gotta get him on the blower
this week—why couldn’t the Joe Biden Saga end up on the big
screen? Since Cameron seems to like one-word movie titles, we could
simply call it Amtrak. I lived the equivalent of three lifetimes on that
wondrous Acela going between Wilmington and D.C. The stories I could
tell about late nights in the CafÉ Car . . . We live in a great
f---ing country. Where else could a movie about a train company make
more money than the company made in its entire history?

The top-grossing film of all time, Avatar, was itself a
subversive and, might I add, blue Trojan horse that lacerated America.
In this digitized 3-D cartoon, vindictive military conquerors (the
United States) will stop at nothing to obtain a natural energy resource
on the planet Pandora. To get it, they intend to lay waste to the
peace-loving, kindhearted (overgrown Smurf) natives of the planet, the
Na’vi. In the end, the military imperialists get their comeuppance
and the liberal, sci-fi revenge flick draws to a merciful conclusion.
Howard Zinn really should have gotten at least a co-writer credit on
this monstrosity.

Director James Cameron admitted that his masterpiece was a
“comment about the colonial period in North America and South
America.” What a surprise. This is from the same James Cameron who
suggested in a documentary a few years ago that Jesus’s
resurrection never happened and that the Messiah was a married family
man whose bones had been discovered in a Middle Eastern tomb. I liked it
better when Cameron made movies that clearly telegraphed his core
message—remember True Lies?

Oliver Stone, who can always be relied on to bash America, is working on
a ten-part documentary series for Showtime called Oliver
Stone’s Secret History of America. The man who brought us the
kinder, gentler side of Hugo Chavez has now found subjects truly worthy
of his talent. Stone’s objective: to rehabilitate the most
despicable characters of the twentieth century at the expense of
America. The director shared his plan with the Television Critics
Association during preproduction. He said, “Stalin, Hitler, Mao .
. . these people have been vilified pretty thoroughly by history . . .
I’ve been able to walk in Stalin’s shoes and Hitler’s
shoes to understand their point of view. We’re going to educate
our minds and liberalize them and broaden them. We want to move beyond
opinions. . . . Go into the funding of the Nazi party. How many American
corporations were involved, from GM through IBM.” Only in
Stone’s twisted mind can the country that liberated and rebuilt
Europe be responsible for the rise of the Third Reich!

Like his fellow comrades, Stone has a method to his madness. He told the
television critics that he intends to send his Secret History
documentaries to schools so students can consider another take on their
history. “It would be a very different counterweight to what
they’re learning,” Stone maintains. But after flipping
through a few history textbooks, I think it would be a reiteration of
what they are already learning.

Each of these destructive revisionists has one goal in mind: to
reprogram Americans, young and old. They want to weaken confidence in
the historical foundations of the country and wean us off this ideal of
America the beautiful.

THE DIARY OF PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA

THE PRIVATE RESIDENCE

March 11, 2010

10:35 p.m. Tom Hanks and Steve Spielberg just left the screening room.
They wanted to show me their new miniseries, The Pacific. Personally, I
would have liked to finish watching Che with Reggie. (That Benicio del
Toro looks just like the great man! If Desiree were still around
I’d have del Toro in for a night of revolutionary poetry reading.
But Axe says we have to cool it with the showy events, at least until
the midterm elections are over.)

Anyway, Hanks and Steve originally wanted to show us four hours of this
epic. I wouldn’t sit through four hours of a documentary about me
much less some HBO thing about old white guys shooting up my brothers
and sisters in the Pacific! So they edited together a preview reel for
us. One hour and we were out of there. For appearances, we had to invite
all the military brass and some WWII vets. I always get a little
squeamish being at the movies with those people. It’s like sitting
in the dark with Ted Bundy or Scott Peterson—no telling what they
might do, especially if they see something that brings on a flashback.

The highlight of the screening was when Hanks got up for his preamble
and said he was amazed at what America did to the Japanese people. He
said that he and Steve wanted to dramatically show the true expressions
of racism and terrorism unleashed by our soldiers at this moment in our
history. I tried not to laugh when I saw the expression on the war
vets’ faces. The VFW people and some of the Joint Chiefs looked
like they had just been sprayed with napalm.

When it was over, Miche and I were clapping and cheering. The brass
didn’t budge. Neither did the vets. So I stood up like Lincoln and
thanked Tom and Steve for being “true patriots, unafraid to
confront history with honesty and clarity.” Like Miche said as we
went upstairs, “If those vets don’t like the truth, let
’em go rent a John Wayne movie.”

A LOVE WORTH FIGHTING FOR

It is not enough to think well of America: we must learn to love her
again. When we hear the phrase “love of country,” does it
mean to us what it meant to past generations? It should. America was
founded through great struggle and bloodshed in order that our citizenry
could live in freedom, to pursue our own destinies. Our Founding Fathers
did not believe that our national pride and patriotism should depend on
how much the government is doing for us. Our system of government
was ingeniously devised by men who gave us the opportunity to set the
course for the nation. We are supposed to be steering the boat, not just
acting like anxious passengers waiting on board to be told what our
orders are. Where we end up as a nation depends on whether the American
people are willing to continue the battle for liberty. It is not written
on some tablet somewhere that America will last forever—she will
only endure so long as we are committed to protecting our founding
principles.

Our loyalty to our country should be everlasting and immovable. This is
not “blind loyalty,” as leftists would aver. In fact, this
loyalty and love actually lead us at times to criticize the course our
nation is taking. We love our parents and our children unconditionally,
but that does not mean that they are beyond reproach regardless of what
they do or how they behave. True love means being committed despite the
shortcomings of the one we adore. While offering honest, constructive
criticism, we train ourselves to focus on the good in the other person.
And with America, we should never lose sight of the astounding
accomplishments and advances, the rich, noble history, and the many
gifts America continues to give the world.

We fight and risk our lives only for those things that we truly
love— which is why the epidemic trashing of America is so
destructive. It weakens our resolve and our commitment. America remains
the world’s best hope and she is worth our sacrifice. This is the
deep devotion and love that we must kindle once more in ourselves and in
our children.

The house I live in, The goodness everywhere, A land of wealth and
beauty, With enough for all to share; A house that we call Freedom, A
home of Liberty, And it belongs to fighting people That’s America
to me.

My mother and father taught me to love my country, and I am so grateful
to them for instilling that sentiment in me. I think we all learn love
of country from our families. Sadly, today there are many who tell the
next generation that America is fundamentally flawed—a place where
only the rich and privileged succeed. This thinking, like it or not,
will affect not only the future of those who accept it, but also our
collective future. We have to correct these false ideas right and
redouble our commitment to America’s creed.

My father is a proud World War II veteran and my mother had a fierce
loyalty about all things American. I remember one evening with my
parents as a child in the early 1970s, watching radicals burning flags
on the evening news. My mother turned to me, serious as General Patton,
and said, “Don’t you ever do that.” I’ve never
forgotten her words.

Developing a personal love of this country and coming to a deeper
appreciation of what America is remains a civic responsibility—our
patriotic duty. We cannot allow America to forget herself. In his
farewell address, Ronald Reagan issued this caution: “If we forget
what we did, we won’t know who we are. I’m warning of an
eradication of the American memory that could result, ultimately, in an
erosion of the American spirit.”

That spirit is a fighting spirit—a faithful spirit, a hopeful
spirit, a spirit capable of overcoming any obstacle or setback. We need
that fighting spirit again. To summon it, we have to recall honestly,
free of distortions, what America did and how she did it.

A few years ago, friends of mine took their young sons to a Veterans Day
celebration in Washington, D.C. At first the boys seemed uninterested,
but as they watched generations of warriors march by, it touched
something within them. For the first time these children considered the
sacrifices that allowed them to live free. They spoke to a
wheelchair-bound Korean War vet seated next to them. To remember the
moment, my friends took a picture of the boys and the veteran, and that
framed photo sits on the boys’ dresser in their bedroom to this
day. Over the years it has become a touchstone of American sacrifice for
them. They revere this man for his contribution to the country and for
the example that inspired them to investigate the Korean War for
themselves. They now make an effort to thank all members of the military
for their service. Americans should all take the time to be this curious
about our history and this grateful for those who paid the price to
shape it. Now it is our turn.

Our forefathers and mothers battled a repressive Crown bent on stifling
their liberty. Today we face an equally repressive government
bureaucracy that is slowly sapping our freedom and mortgaging our
future. We are lulled into complacency by a pop culture that is as
deadening as it is corrosive. This is the moment to take a
stand—to say, “No more.” This is a time for patriots,
a time to revive our American spirit and fight for the principles upon
which our country was founded.

Samuel Adams spoke the truth when he said, “If ever a time should
come, when vain and aspiring men shall possess the highest seats in
Government, our country will stand in need of its experienced patriots
to prevent its ruin.” To answer that call, we must be
“experienced” and ready for the challenge. And that only
comes from doing the intellectual, interior work needed to be a fully
engaged citizen.

I am elated to see elections all over the country where citizens, not
professional politicians, are willing to step forward and seek public
office. We are returning to the example of the founders. From Washington
to Jefferson to Hamilton, these men lent their expertise to the service
of the nation for a time, before returning to the private sector. Public
service was not a retirement destination, but a temporary contribution
for the benefit of the country. I hope the rise of the citizen
legislators that we are witnessing now will follow that historical
model. We need farmers, lawyers, doctors, teachers, mothers, and small
business owners who willingly offer their talents to their fellow
Americans for a time, and know when to go back to their private lives.

If we put America above our own self interest, perhaps that spirit of
generous public service will return. The people are watching, especially
the young.

The fight for freedom never ends; it just changes form. In the
Revolutionary War, our citizens took up muskets against the British. In
the civil rights struggle, Rosa Parks refused to sit in the back of the
bus. Today we use new technology to organize and petition our political
leaders and find new candidates to run.

THE WINNING WAY

There are concrete things each of us can do to help revive our love of
America. The following books will help give you an accurate appreciation
of our spirit, a sense of the amazing people who shaped the country, and
remind you what America truly means:

1776, David McCullough. America’s favorite historian
offers a brilliant snapshot of our country’s most important year.
It reveals the difficulties faced by this ragtag band of patriots and
proves that the battle for liberty is never easy.

George Washington: The Indispensable Man, James T.
Flexner. This is the one-volume distillation of Flexner’s
Pulitzer Prize–winning, four-volume biography of Washington. In it
you will find the story of this “great and good man” told
with honesty and panache.

America: The Last Best Hope, Bill Bennett. This two-volume
set is a fantastic general history of the United States that candidly
confronts the highs and lows of America’s past. But the final
effect, and Bennett’s intention, is to inspire love of
country—and boy does he succeed.

A History of the American People, Paul Johnson. For an
overview of the whole American experience this is a great place to
start. Any book that begins, “The Creation of the United States of
America is the greatest of all human adventures,” and concludes
that America is “still the first, best hope for the human
race” is a must-read.

The Federalist Papers, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John
Jay. If you want the Founding Fathers’ take on the
Constitution and our government, this is it. These eighty-five articles
explain and defend our republican form of government like no other
single volume. And though parts of it can be a rough slog, it should not
be overlooked by any true patriot.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain. The image
of Huck and Jim floating down the mighty Mississippi still captures our
American thirst for freedom and liberty. It is one of those
indispensable American reads filled with Twain’s trademark wit and
perfect dialogue.

The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt/Theodore Rex, Edmund
Morris. The first two volumes of Morris’s trilogy is a
thrilling exploration of the events and people that formed one of
America’s great presidents. He didn’t win the Pulitzer for
nothing.

Other Resources

To prepare young patriots for the inheritance that is theirs, the
two-volume Bill Bennett book America: The Last Best Hope has now
been transformed into a curriculum. It is called The Roadmap to
America: The Last Best Hope and can be found at
www.roadmaptolastbesthope.com.

I also came across a wonderful resource for families making travel
plans. Why not turn your vacation into a patriotic pilgrimage? This
National Park Service site identifies historic places in every state
that can be used to teach some part of American history to all citizens.
These are trips worth taking that connect us to the past in a visceral
way. Visit www.nps.gov/history/nr/twhp/standards.htm for a full list of
locations.

And we cannot forget the music of America that is a brilliant reflection
of her soul. Our songbook is chock full of neglected treasures. We
should take time to reacquaint ourselves with the American masters who
shared the sound of freedom with the world (and I don’t mean Lady
Gaga). Give a listen to the music of these American musical
giants:

John Philip Sousa

Scott Joplin

George Gershwin

Aaron Copland

Harry Warren

Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein

Irving Berlin

Duke Ellington

Stephen Sondheim

© 2010 Laura Ingraham

(Continues...)

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Excerpted from The Obama Diaries by Laura Ingraham. Copyright © by Laura Ingraham. Excerpted by permission. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing.

 

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