It’s always interesting to compare and contrast statements made by a great patriot, great President, honorable man, and oratory genius … and a guy like President Obama.
Consider this Ronald Reagan address to the nation on Thanksgiving of 1985. You’ll notice the mention of such things as God, freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and limited government – all values that our current President, Barack Obama, has worked diligently to erode during his two terms in the White House.
Check out Reagan’s address to the nation in 1985 below …
Transcript:
“Good morning, everyone. You know, the Statue of Liberty and this wonderful holiday called Thanksgiving go together naturally because although as Americans we have many things for which to be thankful, none is more important than our liberty. Liberty: that quality of government, that brightness of mind and spirit for which the Pilgrim Fathers braved the seas and Americans for two centuries have laid down their lives.
“Today, while religion is suppressed in perhaps one third of the world, we Americans are free to worship the Almighty as we choose. While entire nations must endure the yoke of tyranny, we are free to speak our minds, to enjoy an unfettered and vigorous press, and to make government abide by the limits we deem just. While millions live behind walls, we remain free to travel throughout the land to share this precious day with those we love most deeply – the members of our families.
“My fellow Americans, let us keep this Thanksgiving Day sacred. Let us thank God for the bounty and goodness of our nation. And as a measure of our gratitude, let us rededicate ourselves to the preservation of this: the land of the free and the home of the brave.
“From the Reagan family to your family: happy Thanksgiving and God bless you all.”
Other presidents throughout history have praised God in their Thanksgiving address.
President George Washington proclaimed the first Thanksgiving Day to be held in 1789, calling it “a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favours of Almighty God”.
President Lincoln shaped Thanksgiving into it’s modern day form, making it a national holiday in America and acknowledging “the gracious gifts of the Most High God.”
President Obama however, typically fails to even mention God in his Thanksgiving Day speeches.
Comment: What do you think of President Reagan’s Thanksgiving Day address? Do you see a major difference between Reagan and Obama’s values in their addresses and how they carried themselves?
