via Sheeply Wolves, 7/24
As I write this, the story of the attempted assassination of Donald Trump at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania is still fresh news. Elon Musk just gave the former president his full endorsement. The internet is a flurry with predictions of Trump’s impending election and anger against the Left. Iconic pictures of Donald Trump shouting “fight” with his fist raised are locked into the memory of voters and the pages of history. This is the moment we entered a new political paradigm.
Enemy Of The People
Let me illustrate. The headline at CNN right currently reads: “Trump injured in incident at Pennsylvania rally.” According to screenshots on social media, the initial headline apparently read: “Secret Service rushes Trump offstage after he falls at rally.” MSNBC and the Daily Beast are connecting the incident to “popping” noises. At least the New York Time’s heading stated that it sounded like gunshots, but apparently the jury is still out. Tennessee State Representative Antonio Parkinson even speculated that the incident may have been staged.
The media’s collective resistance to calling this what it actually is, an attempted assassination, shows more than a betrayal of journalistic standards. They are now seen for what they actually are: wartime propagandists, molding the truth to what suits them politically. This is not bias. It is theater of the worst kind.
A former president was clearly seen with blood streaming from his ear at a campaign rally after shots were heard. How else do you categorize this kind of thing?
The Red-Pilled Right
Unfortunately, for many this is not a shock. Members of my own family have expressed their surprise for years at the fact that Trump has not already been “taken out.” None of them will be surprised at one eyewitness account who claimed he was ignored by the Police and Secret Service when he reported the would-be assassin on top of a nearby roof. They likewise will not be the least bit surprised by one report that the Secret Service agents protecting Trump had already asked the Biden administration for more security resources but did not receive them.
I cannot remember hearing this kind of talk or cynicism about opposition to any president during my lifetime. Since 2016, a shift away from conventional politics and toward things like “the great sort,” “national divorce,” and “Christian Nationalism” have organically started to rearrange the political right.
Young white men are especially aware of the bias against them. In some ways, they do not feel welcome in their own country based on hiring practice, media portrayal, aid to foreigners, and educational opportunity. They want someone who is not ashamed to claim them or publicly receive their support.
Return To The Political
I assume much of the media analysis will eventually agree that we are entering new territory but they will misdiagnose the cause and effect. They will say we moved away from politics and toward polarization because Donald Trump said divisive things which inspired a mentally ill person to shoot at him. Of course, we cannot forget that Republicans who support gun laws are also to blame.
Actually, what’s really occurring is a return to the political. Politics has always been about advocating on behalf of ones constituents and identifying friends and enemies along the way who either help or hinder that goal. To be political is to assume divided interests.
Dr. Russell Fuller showed me a few years ago something many commentators believe regarding the reference in Daniel 2:43 to the Roman Empire’s mixture of iron and clay. It seems that multiculturalism of a certain variety weakened the Roman empire by introducing foreign elements with different interests and loyalties. The prophetic verse states that the iron and clay “will combine with one another in the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, even as iron does not combine with pottery.” Edward Gibbon later wrote about “the introduction of Barbarians into the Roman armies” that “became every day more universal, more necessary, and more fatal.”
Like most things, the shift to new political arrangements have been gradual, but today they accelerated. The Cold War generations, of which I as a millennial am the last having been born before the dissolution of the Soviet Union, enjoyed for a brief moment an America united against a common threat. Americanism meant a general respect for Christianity, a commitment to hard work, a reverence for folk heroes, and the shared enjoyment of national pastimes. Both parties had to subscribe to these elements and Democrats could not associate too closely with communists. In the end, people thought politicians from both parties loved America and political violence and assassination attempts came from outside agitators.
The Culture Siege
Today the situation is different. Truth be told it has been different for decades but Cold War era inertia has kept us thinking things were the same for too long. People cannot deny what they see with their own eyes. A weaponized deep state apparatus, rigged elections, dumping masses of migrants into the heartland, large foreign aid packages for others but not our own, a military trained to recognize right-wing groups as their main domestic threat, multiple attempts to put Donald Trump in jail, and the list goes on.
President Joe Biden’s call to “unite as one nation” in condemning this act will likely fall on deaf ears. It is too late to say “peace, peace” when there is no peace. Ordinary decent Americans know they are in the cross-hairs simply for not going along with the Left’s latest innovations. There is no way to cross this river except through it.
As believers it has never been more important for us to be as wise as serpents and as innocent as doves. We must dedicate ourselves to achieving peace through prayer and whatever political resources we have. We must establish outposts of Christian freedom for our people guided by natural loves and biblical ethics. As Americans it has never been more important for us to see what is happening for what it is. We are entering a state of war. There are people who will not let us share the remainder of this Republic with them. These battles will play out in the political realm, but they may not remain there. Be prepared for whatever comes as much as you can.
In the end, God is the one who ordains nations to rise and fall. We are the ones who He will hold responsible for doing our part to protect what He’s given us.
Jon Harris
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Jon is an author, producer, and cultural commentator. He hosts the Conversations That Matter podcast.
Crisis Point: America’s Political Landscape in the Wake of Trump’s Assassination Attempt