Are Progressives Anti-American?

I posit that they are; and there is ample evidence that I am right.

 At a recent dinner meeting, Rudy Giuliani made the charge that “President Obama does not love America.” Scott Walker, the front-running Republican candidate for President, was sitting near him, and Mr. Walker would not refute Giuliani’s claim. Walker has since been attacked by the liberal press for not denying that Giuliani’s claim is legitimate. It seems that some in prominent positions in America share my opinion.

 Progressivism developed in the 19^th Century as a broad philosophy based on the Idea of Progress, which asserts that advancement in science, technology, economic development, and social organization are vital to improve the human condition. Progressivism became highly significant during the Age of Enlightenment in Europe, out of the belief that Europe was demonstrating that societies could progress in civility from barbaric conditions to civilization through strengthening the basis of scientific knowledge as the foundation of society. A factor in the development of Progressivism in America was the obvious abuses of power that were developed by unbridled capitalism in the Industrial Revolution of America. Original principles of Progressivism included the value of the past, nobility of Western civilization, worth of economic/technological growth, faith in reason and scientific/scholarly knowledge obtained through reason, and the intrinsic importance and worth of life on earth. However, the noble principles of Progressivism have eventually morphed into the ideology of the far left in American politics and economic policy.

 American Presidents who have claimed the mantra of Progressivism in their own times have been Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson, and Barack Obama.

 In his well-known book, “Culture Wars,” (published in 1991) author James Hunter points out some enlightening results of public surveys measuring the attitudes of Americans toward our nation. Although the data are old, they still point to truth, which few can legitimately refute. These surveys were aimed at finding the differences between orthodox Americans and Progressives in our nation. For instance:

1. When asked, “How much confidence do you have in the ability of the United States to deal wisely with present world problems?” Progressives were twice as likely as their orthodox counterparts to say, “not very much” or “none at all.”
2. When asked if the United States “acts as a force for good in the world, 81% of the orthodox answered “yes,” while 51% of Progressives answered that the United States was “neutral” or “a force for evil.”
3. When asked if they agree with the statement, “America treats the people of the Third World unfairly,” 85% of Progressives answered “yes.” A majority of orthodox respondents disagreed with that statement.
   The divide between people oriented on conservative (orthodox) political viewpoints and people oriented along progressive (liberal) viewpoints defines itself in their attitude about what is freedom and what is justice. Cultural conservatives, i.e., the “orthodox” believers in Hunter’s book, define freedom economically (freedom of economic opportunity) and justice as righteous living (treating one another with dignity and respect). On the other hand, Progressives look at freedom socially (as individual rights) and justice economically (as equity in income and social services).
   Progressives look at our American polity with great suspicion, tending to confirm the beliefs of many conservatives that they actually belong to the “Blame America first bunch.” On the other hand, Conservatives still cling to the belief that America is a “City on a hill,” an America that still has a “manifest destiny,” to save the world for freedom, civil rights, and free market entrepreneurism.
    Two vignettes serve to illustrate my points:
    We all remember the famous comment made by Michelle Obama when her husband was first nominated for President in 2008—“This is the first time I have ever been proud to be an American.” I guess she had been ashamed of America before the nomination.
    The other vignette was something that happened to me in a Denver store after I had been attending a Republican meeting. I was wearing a necktie, which had on it an image of the American flag. A young man came up to me and said, “I see you are a Republican.” I asked him how he knew that; and he told me he was a political science student at the University of Denver. He attended many political meetings around the city, and he noticed that at Democrat meetings, he saw symbols of loyalty to China, Tibet, and Somalia, but very few references to America. When he visited Republican meetings, he saw only symbols of American flags and references to the United States.
    Yes, I still believe that Progressives in America deserve to be called the “Blame America first bunch.” I believe that America still holds the moral high ground in both domestic and international politics. I still believe that America is a “City on a hill.” And…I believe that Progressives have a very opposite belief about America.