The sentiment, “I’m proud to be an American, where at least I know I’m free,” still rings true to the American ear, though more so now on the latter note of “at least I know I’m free.” In recent years, it has become more difficult to take pride in American identity — not because our core values and freedoms are not something to be proud of, but because our leaders do not conduct themselves in a respectable way.
Most would consider a leader to be someone who embodies honesty, integrity, ambition, tact and is fit to wield power under pressure over a constituency for its good. Under the previous and current administrations, however, America has seen anything but leadership as it ought to relate to the above qualities.
The Biden administration came into office in a time of great tumult. The nation was reeling from the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the times were unprecedented to say the least. As a nation that had not dealt with a severe pandemic since 2009 with the H1N1 outbreak, much less one that had never seen such widespread socioeconomic shutdown, former President Joe Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris had a major mess on their hands. Despite a rushed vaccine effort and widespread shutdowns, 230 million Americans were vaccinated by the end of their term. The national issue of the COVID-19 pandemic, however, took great precedence over most issues in the news cycle at the time.
How could Americans ponder anything other than the impending doom of the coronavirus? The pandemic response masked major cracks in the administration. At the beginning of the term, the Biden administration enacted and revoked several policies that opened the border with Mexico to illegal immigration, including ending the Remain in Mexico Program and construction on a stronger physical border. Additionally, they used government funding to pay for flight expenses of some of the 7.2 million illegal immigrants across the border into the United States. This all occurred as they claimed the border was under control.
In August 2021, the Biden administration also oversaw a nightmarish withdrawal of U.S. troops and civilians from Afghanistan. The intent was to prevent “another generation of troops [from fighting and dying] in a conflict that had no end in sight,” according to the National Security Council.
While a noble aim, the actual withdrawal was entirely botched and endangered the lives of countless Americans due to Biden’s choice to opt for a date later than May 1 (the agreed-upon withdrawal date between the prior administration and the Taliban). It was an embarrassment for the entire nation.
Arguably, the largest blunder was the cover-up of Biden’s health and ability to run the country. Almost everyone witnessed the unfathomable events of the first debate between Biden and President Donald Trump ahead of the 2024 election. During the debate, 81-year-old Biden consistently mumbled and lost his train of thought to the point that the moderator had to cut him off repeatedly in order to maintain a coherent discourse.
Now out of office, even Harris has admitted that it was “recklessness” that Biden was running yet again while at an age most Americans would consider senile. By the end of its term, the Biden administration made clear that it was neither honest nor effective.
The Biden administration’s failure to present a productive, strong and unified American front paved the way for the election of the Trump ticket, under which many Americans subscribed to the promise that Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance would “Make America Great Again.”
Unfortunately, this administration has made the shortcomings of the prior administration seem like child’s play. The Trump administration, to date, has not even attempted to hide the vulgarity under which it operates. At the bare minimum, professionalism is required of a political leader; however, Trump has repeatedly engaged in behaviors impermissible for a sitting president, specifically his posts on his Truth Social platform.
Just one month ago, Trump made a post supporting an American Eagle ad with Sydney Sweeney that very clearly had eugenicist subthemes, and he also denounced Taylor Swift as “NO LONGER HOT” for not being Republican.
Trump has also put forth a great deal of effort to project military power to stamp out illegal immigration, anti-American sentiment and crime. When protests and riots broke out in Los Angeles over the deployment of ICE into local communities, Trump sent 2,000 National Guard members into LA to “address the lawlessness” despite the objections of Mayor Karen Bass and Gov. Gavin Newsom. Trump’s decision blurred the lines between Title 10 and Title 32 of the U.S. Code, as Trump did not seek gubernatorial approval, nor did the riots quite fit the definition of a rebellion on a federal level.
In addition to this earlier presentation of executive power, Trump deployed the National Guard to D.C. to curb crime and threatened to do so in Chicago and New Orleans as well. All three of these cities are notably sanctuary cities. These events led to an expansive discourse on the power of the president to do whatever he pleases, especially while superseding the law he ought to represent — and so there is validity in the “No Kings” sentiment that many Americans currently hold, though both administrations have abused their station.
The latest frustration of the Trump administration is its failure to be forthright in regard to the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. A major Trump campaign promise was the release of the Epstein files sometime after the election. Recently, a Senate bill that would have called for the release of the files was thwarted by an almost unanimous Republican vote. Trump had asked back in June why the Democrats hadn’t released the files if there was “a smoking gun.”
It is notable that the Democrats did not always demand the release of the Epstein files. However, it is also notable that Trump was just accused of allegedly penning an inappropriate 50th birthday card to Epstein that had “Donald” signed in the woman’s private area and Trump’s full name just above. According to reporting on materials subpoenaed of the Epstein estate from the House Oversight Committee.
Regardless of what you may make of the above events and their several nuances — as there than certainly more than can be presented in an article of this size — you cannot deny that the sheer level of scandal attached to the prior and current administrations is embarrassing for our nation. We appear weak, disheveled and immature, all purely from the great missteps of our leaders.
We cannot allow the sheer dishonesty and frailty of the Biden administration, nor the petulance and abuse of power presented by the Trump administration, to become the standard for our leaders. In order to recover our reputation and confidence as a country, we will require no kings, fools nor infirmity.
Riley Sanders is an 18-year-old biology major from Denham Springs, La.
