By June of 1940, England was left standing virtually alone to look down the throat of Germany’s Wehrmacht perched just across the Channel who, they knew, was viewing their country as the next prey to be crushed.
On the 4th day of that month—the last day of the Dunkirk operation and only two weeks before the fall of France—one Englishman of unique resolve had the courage to step forward to address his nation about the tremendous peril they were facing, and at the same time, to slap that purely evil monster in the face, by boldly declaring:
“We shall not flag or fail. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills. We shall never surrender.”
According to historian Paul Johnson’s account of Churchill, the significance of these words was twofold. First and foremost, the English believed them to be true because they needed them to be so at that dangerous time if they were to have any hope. But then secondly, his words—and thus, the hope they provided—also spread throughout the towns and villages across the Channel as well. And from that hope emerged a resolve on the part of many across Europe to resist a metastasizing tyranny under which they were either then or soon to be enslaved.
In fact, his courage and bold defiance went viral across the continent and by doing so, encouraged many men and women to actually accomplish monumental feats that, in other times, or under different leadership, they might have thought impossible and never attempted. Which, of course, is exactly the emotional shove the world needed at that moment in history for people everywhere to unite with a determination that was necessary to overcome the military Goliath that Hitler had unleashed upon the world.
Rarely do the circumstances of history congeal to the point that such a man as Churchill is compelled to rise to the occasion and volunteer his talents to help save a nation—and perhaps the entire world—in such a dramatic way as he was called upon to do. And some might argue that we are in such a time today. On many fronts, our civilization in America—and that of many nations around the world—appears to be divided unlike any other time following World War II. To a growing number, it appears to be—like it was back then—on the brink of destruction. (See Victor Davis Hanson: The Thinnest Veneer of Civilization.)
For that reason, many in this country have been seeking a leader who will return America to the great and unique nation it was intended to be. Quite simply, that would be a nation with a government wholly committed to, and limited by, our Constitution and the Rule of Law where our liberty is safeguarded due to the ensuing preservation of our God-given rights to speak freely, practice our chosen faith, bear arms, enjoy due process and protect our children from harm. All of which, on ground level, requires a government committed to secure borders, honest elections, the eradication of government corruption, a single tier system of justice and the enforcement of law and order in our communities. Should these cultural pillars supporting our liberty be allowed to crumble, our civilization as we expect it to be, will cease to exist.
From one point of view, such expectations of our government should be shared by all patriots who love what America was meant to stand for and which indeed, now constitutes the core of what has come to be known as the MAGA movement. And from that truth, the flip side of the coin is that those who openly oppose holding our government to these minimal standards must— by virtue of all reason and logic—also be opposed to the Constitutional Republic as originally founded, and thus, are the true insurrectionists. It is no small irony that the present administration that is entirely controlled by a political party opposed to fulfilling many, if not all, of these expectations has come out on numerous recent occasions to call Donald Trump’s supporters domestic terrorists who are destroying our democracy. Simply referring to themselves as “Americans” who favor “democracy” is no longer enough to carry the day, when, for all practical purposes, they have declared war on those who are committed to our Constitution. That is… all true Americans.
That is the very hypocrisy of our current “government” that is driving people in droves to support Donald J. Trump. By way of example, he has educated Americans to the fact that those opposed to such Constitutional standards are defining “democracy” differently than are patriots and moving this country away from the “democratic republic” it was created to be.
In this way, like Churchill, President Trump is confronting an enemy (i.e. the “swamp”) threatening America itself and has energized Americans who want that country back. To the chagrin of the likes of the Bidens, the Obamas, the Clintons, Soros and RINOs like McConnell and Cheney … it is working.
Why?
Because, like Churchill, his incredible courage is infectious.
Why?
Because, like Churchill, the patriotic people in this country want to believe him, and in fact, need to believe him.
Why?
Because they want their country back and Donald Trump has volunteered to come forward to lead the charge. On a daily basis—and particularly at each of his rallies—he promises to restore the integrity of our Republic and to defy the tyrants emerging between our shores who would oppose that noble cause.
In effect, like Churchill and unlike most others, he has the courage to declare before all men:
“We will not bend, we will not break, we will not yield. We will never give in, we will never give up. We will never ever, ever back down.
“As long as we are confident and united, the tyrants we're fighting do not stand even a chance. We are Americans and Americans kneel to God and God alone.”
And like Churchill in 1940, President Trump’s message for today is simple, but one that history is again demanding be shouted in the face of tyranny.
Cliff Nichols is an attorney, the author of A Barrister’s Tales and the curator of The American Landscape.