You may have recently heard a certain French politician’s proclamation, something along the lines of “Hey, America: Give France back the Statue of Liberty.”
This bold claim was made by Raphaël Glucksmann, a member of the European Parliament and the leader of Place Publique, a political party in France. He argues that some Americans have “switch[ed] to the side of the tyrants.”
I agree. The country has made some very concerning choices. I detest our government, especially regarding recent choices made regarding education, but I digress.
The humor in this situation is that the White House’s very own Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt, responded to Glucksmann’s comments.
Rather succinctly, the French should “be grateful they’re not speaking German.”
Ignoring the current various Nazi allegations towards our heads of government and potential Nazi salutes that may or may not be being thrown, it is in incredibly poor taste for the White House’s Press Secretary to attempt to hold World War II over France’s head like it’s some playful gotcha moment.
The trivialization of the sacrifices made by soldiers and citizens alike, along with tactless name-calling, is nothing new to the Trump administration. After all, the apple never falls far from the tree.
However, it’s still a disgusting reminder and shows that politics is becoming an ever-increasing dramatic mockery of an elementary school playground with lackluster supervision.
Press Secretary Leavitt making a snappy retort to Glucksmann’s claim of rising fascism in America that involves throwing World War II in his face is exactly the childlike response one can expect from a member of Trump’s government.
The most embarrassing thing for me as an American citizen is Glucksmann’s eloquent response on X (formerly known as Twitter). He responds as I want every politician to, with sense, emotion, clarity, and a noticeable lack of middle-school cattiness. You can read it here, and you will notice a remarkable lack of name-calling and bullying.
Glucksmann does something that no disciple of Trump would do: He acknowledges that he is grateful for the nation of the person he’s arguing against. This shows humility, a trait he finds lacking in our current government.
The speech Glucksmann posted is also full of sound judgment and respectful replies, not childish digs. He points out what America was known for: “[America] celebrated science and didn’t fire researchers for using banned words. It welcomed the persecuted and didn’t target them.”
Unlike a lot of our contemporary leftist influencers and politicians, Gluscksmann didn’t proclaim the doom of America; he said we will rise again, and we will learn to be better.
Glucksmann, as a politician speaking on anything, shows the decorum I demand to be represented with, and I wish there were a lingo our government spoke. We need more people like Glucksmann and far, far less bullies.
His call-out was a powerful reminder that America is straying from her way: freedom and equality. Seeing as our government is hellbent on rewriting everything, we, the people, must be vocal like Glucksmann.
Garrett McEntee is a 19-year-old English sophomore from Benton, La.
