“Freemen gave us it,
We grew to love it.
We enlisted to defend it,
We fought to uphold it.
We died generously for it,
Now, we entrust you with it,
Value, honour and defend it,
For it, dear friend, is freedom.”
—Author John Browne, May 2013
If you Google the term "Freedom," you'll get results containing various definitions of the term. Among the definitions which can be found are "the ability to move or act freely" and "the state of not having or being affected by something unpleasant, painful, or unwanted."
Although U.S. citizens largely have the form of freedom referred to in the former, whether we have the freedom referenced in the latter is a question that is worth exploring.
From the Revolutionary War to today, the Department of Veterans Affairs states that over 1,190,085 Americans have given their lives to defend our nation.
Of these, the final resting places of over 124,000 are in America’s overseas cemeteries. These men and women made the ultimate sacrifice so that each of us could enjoy wide-ranging freedoms that "We the People" grant to each other, not limited freedoms that are defined by our political class and elites.
One way in which our freedoms are currently being constrained is through economics.
Families are struggling while our nation’s debt is now over $36 trillion.
If you break this down, almost $107,000 of this debt can be attributed to every citizen (including children) and $323,000 to every taxpayer.
As if that weren't bad enough, each year our government continues to run up large deficits that add to this crippling debt.
Last year alone, our government increased the debt by over $1.8 trillion. Although they took in $4.92 trillion in revenue, they spent $6.75 trillion.
Prior to COVID-19, the only years in which the U.S. ever had deficits totaling over $1 trillion was during President Barack Obama’s first four years.
Although the deficit did reach $1.413 trillion in one of those years, it fell below $1 trillion in 2013 and remained below this mark until the COVID-19 pandemic — when deficits ballooned to unprecedented numbers, hitting over $3 trillion in one year.
Although the pandemic is well behind us, we have not returned to pre-COVID-19 level deficits. This is because the Biden administration has continued a pattern of outrageous, reckless spending.
From George Washington to the beginning of Barack Obama’s time in office, a period of 220 years, our nation ran up roughly $10 trillion in debt.
Now, in just the last 16 years, our politicians have managed to more than triple that amount. Think about it, a young 16-year-old person obviously has had absolutely no say in running up that debt, yet he or she will bear the responsibility of paying for it.
Many, including the Sloan School of Management at MIT, believe that the levels of post-COVID spending by the Biden administration is the major reason that inflation rose to a 40-year high.
This inflation has been a silent tax that Biden, and those in Congress who supported him, have imposed on every American citizen.
This insidious tax has made it harder for every American to pay for everyday expenses like groceries, gas, medicine, etc.
This brings us back to the question of our freedom.
I believe all Americans would classify inflation and the debt burden as unpleasant, painful, and unwanted.
In this sense, we do not have total freedom.
Surely those men and women who gave their lives for our freedom would not approve.
This can only mean we've lost our way.
Fortunately, there is some good news.
The American electorate decided on Nov. 5, 2024, to turn the page and send a new leader to Washington. The better news is this leader has a prior four-year track record of positive economic achievement for the men and women of this country.
He's also proven that he is willing to take a very unconventional approach to governing.
Although this may scare some, when I look at the results of the conventional approach taken by our current politicians, my conclusion is that it is about time that we adopt different methods.
As I appreciate it, the government envisioned by our Founders had the simple goals of keeping us free and safe while working to create conditions that would allow for prosperity through free enterprise.
This is the vision which led so many of our military heroes to pay the ultimate price.
As we've seen, there's certainly a case to be made that we have lost some of our freedom from an economic standpoint, and probably in other ways as well.
It is my sincere hope that we took the first step to reclaiming that freedom in November 2024. As we embark on the hope that comes with a new administration, it's up to each of us to hold our leaders accountable to fulfill the promises on which they campaigned.
Joe from Texas is a family man with children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren who has had tremendous success and lived the American Dream. His beliefs are both straightforward and deeply held. He believes in God, his family, and the United States of America. For more information, please visit www.JoeFromTexas.com. Read Joe Penland's Reports — More Here.
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