Donald Trump Says He Doesn’t Believe in “American Exceptionalism”

[NavyCanDo]

And this is precisely why Trump cannot and will not "make America great again."  He doesn't understand what made her great in the first place and how she so drastically went off course.  I tried to tell those morons on TOS that for months.

http://www.weeklystandard.com/without-exceptionalism/article/2001806

He sais it right in this video. His "Great America" come AFTER we, and I quote "take everything back".   What the hell does that mean, and how does that make us Great?    Reagan's Great America was us being "the shining city on a hill".    Trumps Great America, is us being the biggest bully on the block.

[musiclady]

And this is precisely why Trump cannot and will not "make America great again."  He doesn't understand what made her great in the first place and how she so drastically went off course.  I tried to tell those morons on TOS that for months.

http://www.weeklystandard.com/without-exceptionalism/article/2001806

Great point............ and what is so very obvious in this video.

He is CLUELESS as to what the term "American Exceptionalism" means, and what it is that has made us exceptional.

And just noting that in a 4 minute statement, he said the same thing over again about 20 times.

The guy is an absolute mental midget.   

[sitetest]

I didn't realize that this incarnate son of Satan is also a communist.

[INVAR]

Look for the Trump Faithful to come soon to lecture us on what the "proper REAL Conservative" definition of "American Exceptionalism" means in Trumpian.

We will all be told that we do not understand the English language, history or the absolute genius position Trump was speaking from because he is just so far above us simpletons in terms of intelligence.

[Idaho_Cowboy]

Look for the Trump Faithful to come soon to lecture us on what the "proper REAL Conservative" definition of "American Exceptionalism" means in Trumpian.

We will all be told that we do not understand the English language, history or the absolute genius position Trump was speaking from because he is just so far above us simpletons in terms of intelligence.

That's what they do with other topics. 1984 kind of stuff.
I love newspeak. It's double plus good.

[Maj. Bill Martin]

America is “exceptional” because of the founding principles of freedom and liberty, rugged individualism, and free enterprise.

I think we're the only nation founded on ideas rather than ethnicity or the happenstance of geography.  There's no major-nation counterpart to the U.S. being defined by the Declaration of Independence.  Maybe I'm having a brain fart, but I can't think of one.  We truly are unique.

Anyway, can you recall Trump ever talking about those founding principles?  I seriously mean ever.  What I recall from him is a whole lot of stuff he wants to do about the mechanics of the country -- better trade deals, more jobs, tighter borders, etc..  But those ideas...maybe @Mesaclone or someone can find a clip of him talking about that stuff to make me feel better, and I do mean Trump speaking about it off the cuff -- not links to his website where others ghost-write for him.

But this clip from Trump, and what else he's been doing during the campaign, just strike me as so incredibly odd because there doesn't appear to be a philosophy or principles underlying any of it.  I don't think I've ever seen a campaign like this, because Presidential candidates always talk about the big picture stuff to at least some extent.  So not hearing about it at all from a candidate is really a strange thing.

[DCPatriot]

@sinkspur

You're getting sadder and sadder everyday, Sink!

There's not a damned thing wrong with your OP video where he explains what he means....so that even a 5 year-old might understand.

...IOW...in about 2 years, maybe you'll get it.   

[Norm Lenhart]

My take on his comments in this article is that he doesn't believe in American Exceptionalism,  unless he is the one responsible for it.

Sounds like a direct contradiction to Reagan. Donnie the SJW. Great.

In other words, he's willing to humble his country to 'deal'. Which is Socialism. He wants us to not strive to be better than the other guy. Because in his asinine understanding of economics he sees that as a plus.

This is yet another reason I think the facts indicate he's economically illiterate and his father set up some form of braintrust to guide his idiot son through life. He sure didn't accomplish his successes on his own with this mentality.

[DB]

That's what they do with other topics. 1984 kind of stuff.
I love newspeak. It's double plus good.

I give them some credit. You never know what angle they'll come up with to excuse it. It is often pretty darn creative and always convoluted... It isn't easy being a Trump champion who constantly has to explain what "he really said"...

[musiclady]

@sinkspur

You're getting sadder and sadder everyday, Sink!

There's not a damned thing wrong with your OP video where he explains what he means....so that even a 5 year-old might understand.

...IOW...in about 2 years, maybe you'll get it.   

He explained what he meant, which made it clear that he is clueless as to what it means to be part of the America that is exceptional.

And yes, a 5 year old might understand because Trump repeated himself in simple words that any 5 year old might utter, but he still never revealed that he understood a thing about what America really is, and why.

(Most 5 year olds don't, and lil Donnie is no exception.......... pun intended).

[musiclady]

I give them some credit. You never know what angle they'll come up with to excuse it. It is often pretty darn creative and always convoluted... It isn't easy being a Trump champion who constantly has to explain what "he really said"...

It has to be convoluted because every word Trump utters opposes everything a Conservative believes in.

And in this case, what any patriotic American believes in.

[Maj. Bill Martin]

There's not a damned thing wrong with your OP video where he explains what he means....so that even a 5 year-old might understand.

I saw his explanation -- it's essentially exactly the same answer Obama initially gave when asked about "American Exceptionalism", and conservatives absolutely blasted him for that.  Here's the core of Trump's statement:

Look, if I’m a Russian, or I’m a German, or I’m a person we do business with, why, you know, I don't think it's a very nice term. We're exceptional; you're not. First of all, Germany is eating our lunch. So they say, "Why are you exceptional. We’re doing a lot better than you." I never liked the term. And perhaps that's because I don’t have a very big ego and I don’t need terms like that. Honestly. When you're doing business—I watch Obama every once in a while saying "American exceptionalism," it's [Trump makes a face]. I don't like the term.

Obama basically said the same thing initially when asked about it, pointing out that people in other countries likely believe their country also is "exceptional".

"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....

And Obama got absolutely hammered for that, with even the leftist New Republic noting that "if all countries are exceptional, none are".

http://www.factcheck.org/2015/02/obama-and-american-exceptionalism/

The amazing thing about this is that after making that initial statement, Obama has been much more consistent in claiming that we actually are exceptional.  Not that I think he believes it, but at least he says it.  For Trump to reject the concept out of hand, flatly saying "I' don't like the term".... @DCPatriot  , if Hillary had said that, you'd be crucifying her.  We all would.

[Mechanicos]

Truth hurts
US is Broken
Hence Make America Great - because it is not Great now.

The U.S. ranks 14th in education
The U.S. ranks 19th in national satisfaction
The U.S. ranks 44th in health care efficiency
http://www.heritage.org/index/ranking
https://rankingamerica.wordpress.com/how-does-the-united-states-rank-in/

[skeeter]

Truth hurts
US is Broken
Hence Make America Great - because it is not Great now.

The U.S. ranks 14th in education
The U.S. ranks 19th in national satisfaction
The U.S. ranks 44th in health care efficiency
http://www.heritage.org/index/ranking
https://rankingamerica.wordpress.com/how-does-the-united-states-rank-in/

What is the common denominator in all these areas?

Government. A massive, overbearing bureaucracy adding cost and complication (and politics) to everything they get involved in.

So obviously the solution is not more heavy handed government doing 'better deals'. Its less government and more individual freedom.

We once had a candidate in this race who understood this.

[LadyLiberty]

In late April 2015, a month before Trump officially announced his candidacy, he spoke at an event called "Celebrating the American Dream" that was hosted in Houston by the Texas Patriots PAC, a local tea party outfit.

It appears that this group saw right through the charlatan:

Texas Patriots PAC ‏@TXPatriotsPAC  Mar 30
If you truly believe in limited government, you cannot support Donald Trump. http://www.weeklystandard.com/you-wont-believe-what-donald-trump-thinks-the-federal-governments-top-3-roles-are/article/2001749 … #GOPTownhall #ChooseCruz

[Norm Lenhart]

Truth hurts
US is Broken
Hence Make America Great - because it is not Great now.

The U.S. ranks 14th in education
The U.S. ranks 19th in national satisfaction
The U.S. ranks 44th in health care efficiency
http://www.heritage.org/index/ranking
https://rankingamerica.wordpress.com/how-does-the-united-states-rank-in/

Tell me again how we have to vote for the lesser evil when this is the direct result of having done exactly that.

Because, you know, Unicorns didn't create your numbers. Idiots voting for liberal Republicans did. They refused to stop the Dems and in fact joined with them.

[Idaho_Cowboy]

Truth hurts
US is Broken
Hence Make America Great - because it is not Great now.

The U.S. ranks 14th in education
The U.S. ranks 19th in national satisfaction
The U.S. ranks 44th in health care efficiency
http://www.heritage.org/index/ranking
https://rankingamerica.wordpress.com/how-does-the-united-states-rank-in/

Where did we rate with any of that in 1776, 1787, or even 1900. America was founded on an exceptional idea: People are endowned by their creator with certain inalienable rights. The consitution exists to secure the blessing of Liberty. No other country on this earth has ever been founded on those principles. We are exceptional for our ideals, for our heritage, and for our promise that has made America a shining city on a hill since the pilgrims landed.

If Trump doesn't understand that he should move to one of the countries that tops the rankings you provided.

[Maj. Bill Martin]

Truth hurts
US is Broken
Hence Make America Great - because it is not Great now.

The U.S. ranks 14th in education
The U.S. ranks 19th in national satisfaction
The U.S. ranks 44th in health care efficiency
http://www.heritage.org/index/ranking
https://rankingamerica.wordpress.com/how-does-the-united-states-rank-in/

Dude...you're making the same mistake Trump did.  The concept of American Exceptionalism has nothing to do with where we rank in terms of education, health care, etc..  And frankly, using those kind of metrics is the things that the socialists in Europe usually throw at us to say how inferior we are. 

American Exceptionalism refers to the ideas on which this nation was founded.  It's relevance today -- I believe -- is the burden and obligation it places on each of us to fight to preserve that which our ancestors created.  Not in terms of preserving material wealth, but in terms of preserving individual freedom, respect for liberty, etc..  That's what I personally see, and that's what I personally think of, when I look at that flag.  I think of the men who had the freaking balls to do what nobody had done before, and declare a nation of equals based upon those principles, and then go fight the most powerful empire on earth, against all odds, to achieve it.  We owe them, and we owe our kids to preserve those ideals.

Reducing all that to where some group ranks us in terms of health care....damn, that just sucks.

[Mechanicos]

Dude...you're making the same mistake Trump did.  The concept of American Exceptionalism has nothing to do with where we rank in terms of education, health care, etc..  And frankly, using those kind of metrics is the things that the socialists in Europe usually throw at us to say how inferior we are. 

American Exceptionalism refers to the ideas on which this nation was founded.  It's relevance today -- I believe -- is the burden and obligation it places on each of us to fight to preserve that which our ancestors created.  Not in terms of preserving material wealth, but in terms of preserving individual freedom, respect for liberty, etc..  That's what I personally see, and that's what I personally think of, when I look at that flag.  I think of the men who had the freaking balls to do what nobody had done before, and declare a nation of equals based upon those principles, and then go fight the most powerful empire on earth, against all odds, to achieve it.  We owe them, and we owe our kids to preserve those ideals.

Reducing all that to where some group ranks us in terms of health care....damn, that just sucks.

The issue is not what we were,when  its what we are now and where we are going. America is being killed.

[sitetest]

Dude...you're making the same mistake Trump did.  The concept of American Exceptionalism has nothing to do with where we rank in terms of education, health care, etc..  And frankly, using those kind of metrics is the things that the socialists in Europe usually throw at us to say how inferior we are. 

American Exceptionalism refers to the ideas on which this nation was founded.  It's relevance today -- I believe -- is the burden and obligation it places on each of us to fight to preserve that which our ancestors created.  Not in terms of preserving material wealth, but in terms of preserving individual freedom, respect for liberty, etc..  That's what I personally see, and that's what I personally think of, when I look at that flag.  I think of the men who had the freaking balls to do what nobody had done before, and declare a nation of equals based upon those principles, and then go fight the most powerful empire on earth, against all odds, to achieve it.  We owe them, and we owe our kids to preserve those ideals.

Reducing all that to where some group ranks us in terms of health care....damn, that just sucks.

I did my best.  But folks kept voting for this jackass.

[Maj. Bill Martin]

The issue is not what we were,when  its what we are now and where we are going. America is being killed.

If we don't know what we were, and what we are supposed to be, then how the hell are we supposed to figure out where we're supposed to be going?

And bluntly, I think this kind of exemplifies the problem many of us have with Trump.  He's a guy who sees some nut and bolts, but in terms of principles...what are they?  And this lack of believe in American Exceptionalism -- or rather the failure to even comprehend what it actually is -- does a neat job of explaining why he seems so ill-grounded philosophically at times.  He really doesn't believe in this stuff at all.  America, to him, is just about getting the best deals you can.

I'm still on the fence with the guy, but this kind of thing does not help at all.

[Idaho_Cowboy]

The issue is not what we were,when  its what we are now and where we are going. America is being killed.

I know of no of no way of judging the future, but by the past. -Patrick Henry
When the American spirit was in its youth, the language of America was different: Liberty, sir, was the primary object. -Patrick Henry

How can we go back to being great again if people think it has to with healthcare or education.
It's about one thing and one thing alone. FREEDOM. This country was settled by pioneers. There were no hospitals and no schools till they settled the land and built them. They didn't need government hand outs or better deals. They took their freedom and made this country great.

The government is the greatest threat to American Exceptionalism.

[musiclady]

I know of no of no way of judging the future, but by the past. -Patrick Henry
When the American spirit was in its youth, the language of America was different: Liberty, sir, was the primary object. -Patrick Henry

How can we go back to being great again if people think it has to with healthcare or education.
It's about one thing and one thing alone. FREEDOM. This country was settled by pioneers. There were no hospitals and no schools till they settled the land and built them. They didn't need government hand outs or better deals. They took their freedom and made this country great.

The government is the greatest threat to American Exceptionalism.

Great synopsis.  Trump is absolutely clueless............ as are his sycophants.

[Idaho_Cowboy]

The issue is not what we were,when  its what we are now and where we are going. America is being killed.

The sacred rights of mankind are not to be rummaged for among old parchments or musty records. They are written, as with a sunbeam, in the whole volume of human nature, by the hand of the divinity itself; and can never be erased. -Alexander Hamilton

[Lando Lincoln]

"America is the land of the uncommon man.  It is the land where man is free to develop his genius - and reap its just rewards.  It is the land where each man tries to develop whatever qualities he may possess and to rise to whatever degree he can, great or modest.  It is not the land where one glories or is taught to glory in one's mediocrity.  No self-respecting man is or thinks of himself as "little", no matter how poor he may be."
- Ayn Rand

So it was.