Since President Trump’s meeting with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un where they both signed an agreement that could end North Korea’s nuclear weapons program, you cannot turn on a cable news network, listen to talk radio, or read an opinion column like this one and not be bombarded with commentary on the subject.
The unified voice from Team Left has each of them conveying the same, scripted talking points and soundbites:
- Trump gave too much away
- Trump validated a ruthless dictator
- Trump insulted our allies
- Trump has placed America at risk
{mosads}These comments are being made by the same people who rushed to congratulate then President Obama on his 2015 nuclear deal with Iran (which, as an aside, the Iranians never actually had to sign). To refresh your memory, those soundbites were along the lines of:
- Major foreign policy achievement not of his presidency, but of a generation
- Major transformative moment
- Stabilizes the Middle East
- Makes the world safer than it was yesterday
When you compare these sets of statements against the attendant facts of both situations, and then you look at the people who are, or have been, making them, it is easy to conclude that these folks — Nancy Pelosi, Chris Matthews, Rachel Maddow, et.al. — are all nothing more than hypocrites.
Which is exactly what the pundits are calling them. I think we should consider calling them something else.
Etymology is fascinating to me. Understanding the origins of a word can give understanding both to its true underlying meaning, and to how the use of that word has been either corrupted or co-opted over time. It turns out that our word “hypocrite” comes to us from the Ancient Greek “hypokrites” which meant an actor or stage player. It was made up of two Greek words that literally translate as “an interpreter from underneath.” Since Greek actors commonly wore masks, this makes good etymological sense.
So, I am going to make the argument that none of those on Team Left opposed to President Trump’s initiatives with North Korea are hypocrites. There is nothing phony, inconsistent, or duplicitous about their statements. They are not wearing a mask. The fact that they say what say, when and how they say is at the core of who they are and what they believe.
They detest the notion of a strong America. They resent the United States for any, and all, past mistakes and transgressions it may have made, no matter how small. They reject the notion of American exceptionalism. They want to have any effort made to place America as a global leader instead of a global member discredited. They will say whatever they need to say in order to diminish America and, especially to diminish a President who believes in all of the things that they don’t.
Democrats have positioned themselves as the party of peace since the late 1960s/early 1970s. They are the ones who speak of disarmament, who want to avoid military action at almost all costs, who step up to microphones to condemn a single civilian casualty. With that as a given, when Donald Trump makes a remarkable step towards creating a more peaceful world because of a deal with North Korea, you would think that Democrats should support it.
But they don’t.
So they are hypocrites?
No. They aren’t. Trump’s arrangement with North Korea comes from him bringing Kim to the table after tough talk and a willingness to “trump”-et America’s strength. Democrats cannot abide a president who uses our nation’s power to bring an adversary to their pen-stroking knees. To them, this is a historic event, but not a positive one. This is a 180-degree reversal from leading from behind. To them, this is an example of America showing resolve, baring muscle, and being able to get its way in return.
For them, this cannot stand. They have to use any and all means available in order to turn public opinion against it so as to stop it.
President Trump didn’t have to launch missiles to get North Korea to the table. President Trump has, however, made it very clear that he, too, has a “…nuclear button, but it is a much bigger and more powerful one than his, and my button works!” That sort of rhetoric, that sort of boldness, is deeply offensive to Team Left members because the United States simply cannot be that forceful.
They are offended. They are flabbergasted by a Trump doctrine that places America first and that is unapologetic about asserting American power to take a leadership role anywhere in the world where American interests are at stake.
They need to get used to it. While Donald Trump is president, America is going to be in the world’s center ring. Please don’t flatter those who oppose his approach by calling them hypocrites. There are much choicer words for those who seek our nation’s name to be always written in all lower-case letters.
Charlie Kirk is founder and president of Turning Point USA, a nonprofit that promotes free-market values and limited government.