American Unity

Floor Speech

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Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam President, last week marked another Constitution Day celebration. It could not have come at a better time because, for just one little moment, it helped us pause and contemplate two very important things.

First, we took time to think about those values that our Founders knew. They knew that these values were essential to the establishment of a model republic.

Second, we remembered the progress we have made in deciding for ourselves how the passage of time changes or does not change what we can do to make that ``more perfect Union'' even more so.

Free speech, petition, and protest, the right to defend ourselves, the right to cast a vote--these are the freedoms that unite us in times of turmoil, whether we find ourselves in the midst of all-out war or just a particularly contentious election year.

I would argue that how a nation reacts to that turmoil says more about its foundation than it does about who controls the news cycle on any given day.

Divisive voices are hard at work in this country, and they are doing their very best to convince our friends, families, and neighbors that our foundation is weak and that our founding principles are no longer good enough. I find that very sad.

They want us to believe that America as we know it is suddenly irredeemable, that it just can't be safe.

You might ask yourself: Why are they saying all of this in spite of hundreds of years and millions of Americans proving the exact opposite is true?

Here is what I think. They say it because they want us to give up. They want our neighbors, our families, and our friends to give up, call it quits; our best days are behind us. We have all heard them say this. They say: Throw the Constitution in the trash. Rewrite it. Start over. And after you throw the Constitution in the trash, then let's reimagine the world's greatest democracy through our very own destructive lenses of socialism, critical theory, and political correctness. That is what they say.

As I am sure we have all seen, they have come up with some fairly persuasive methods to try to get their way. But I believe that, in the end, these efforts will all be in vain because when push comes to shove, we, the American people, always manage to remember where we have come from and to remember who we are.

It is interesting. I think somehow we Americans always find our way home, back to those first principles. Indeed, I pray that continues.

Our Founders saw what tyranny really looked like. They saw it up close and personal because they had to live through it. They knew exactly--exactly--what would happen if they put the fate of the Republic in the hands of men alone. So what did they do to give that insurance policy, if you will, that democracy and a democratic republic would continue and would stand? They drafted a Constitution, recognizing that our rights are a gift from God and that these rights are not a product of government action or they are not subject to the whims of a mob.

They were also forward thinking. They gave us everything we need to improve upon their work.

I think it is important to remember we have done just that. Over the course of more than two centuries, we have built a nation that is freer, more equal, and, yes, striving every day to be that ``more perfect Union,'' not because outside forces compel us to do so but because we, as Americans, chose to make it that way.

When I see that a friend or a neighborhood has forgotten this, I like to remind them that two of the most emotional and powerful words in the English language are ``remember'' and ``imagine.''

I tell them: Stop for just a moment. Close your eyes and remember what you really love about this country. Remember the special moments. Remember what your parents and your grandparents have told you about love of country. Remember the sacrifices they have made. And, now, just imagine: What would your children and grandkids accomplish? What would they accomplish if they, too, are allowed to grow up in a place where liberty and justice is for all, where they are allowed to dream these big dreams and then dream up a way to make those dreams come true? These are things that are valued above all else.

Of course, as we look at our past and we remember, we look at the future, and we know that in finding common ground--when we find common ground--we see potential, and potential gives us hope. I like to say that hope is staking a claim on an action, on a goal that you are going to achieve.

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