Trump’s speech reestablishes American leadership
Last week before attending the
G20 Summit in Germany, President Trump visited Poland and gave a speech reestablishing America's leadership in the world. The speech was peppered with historical accounts of Poles fighting for freedom, and thousands applauded
Trump throughout the speech.
Trump complimented Poland's people and leaders noting many shared values:
“We reward brilliance. We strive for excellence, and cherish inspiring works of art that honor God. We treasure the rule of law and protect the right to free speech and free expression.
“We empower women as pillars of our society and of our success. We put faith and family, not government and bureaucracy, at the center of our lives. And we debate everything. We challenge everything. We seek to know everything so that we can better know ourselves.
“And above all, we value the dignity of every human life, protect the rights of every person, and share the hope of every soul to live in freedom. That is who we are. Those are the priceless ties that bind us together as nations, as allies, and as a civilization.”
Trump continued:
“This great community of nations has something else in common: In every one of them, it is the people, not the powerful, who have always formed the foundation of freedom and the cornerstone of our defense. The people have been that foundation here in Poland -- as they were right here in Warsaw -- and they were the foundation from the very, very beginning in America.”
Later he added: “We can have the largest economies and the most lethal weapons anywhere on Earth, but if we do not have strong families and strong values, then we will be weak and we will not survive.”
Trump pointed out “that the United States has demonstrated not merely with words but with its actions that we stand firmly behind Article 5, the mutual defense commitment.” Then he added some red meat for our enemies: “That is why we applaud Poland for its decision to move forward this week on acquiring from the United States the battle-tested Patriot air and missile defense system -- the best anywhere in the world. That is also why we salute the Polish people for being one of the NATO countries that has actually achieved the benchmark for investment in our common defense.”
He also warned about threats from within that all nations face: “Finally, on both sides of the Atlantic, our citizens are confronted by yet another danger -- one firmly within our control. This danger is invisible to some but familiar to the Poles: the steady creep of government bureaucracy that drains the vitality and wealth of the people. The West became great not because of paperwork and regulations but because people were allowed to chase their dreams and pursue their destinies.”
President Trump's speech was a powerful prelude to his meetings with many foreign leaders at the G20 Summit. One of the most anticipated meetings was with Russia's President Putin. Contrary to what some smug reporters assured viewers and readers, Trump broached Russia's interference in the 2016 election at the beginning of their meeting. According to Secretary of State Tillerson, Trump and Putin had a robust exchange.
President Trump reestablished America's position of leadership in the world and stood up for America's foundational values of freedom, faith, and family.