Stray Thoughts On Patriotism
Being able to claim love of country as a pillar of your political brand is an outsized advantage for Democrats.
Patriotism is the last vestige of a scoundrel.
You've heard it, I've heard it, everyone has heard this in some context, and it sounds right to anyone with any perspective that reaches even ten feet beyond the borders of their homeland.
The worst, most shameless scoundrels in American political history have expertly wielded the sledgehammer of patriotism against fellow citizens who would dare question their aims. They have intentionally and with great gusto turned important policy discussions into food fights about who has greater love for their country.
"You're either with us, or you're with the terrorists," said one particularly odious and reprehensible American president, perhaps the worst in the country's history, who understood the scoundrel's creed.
Patriotism is inherently toxic, and offers a pipeline to nationalism and, of course, fascism for the weak-willed and unprincipled and opportunistic among us. When I wrote Monday about Republicans relinquishing their death grip on patriotism and ceding it to Democrats over the past decade, I was not suggesting patriotism was suddenly good and worthy now that it largely belongs to the party for which I vote.
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I've seen quite a bit of posting on BlueSky over the past week about Democrats adopting the trappings of patriotism and looking more and more like the Republicans that have tormented us for so long and made the United States a less free, more unfair place to live. The posts went something like this: Patriotism is bad and Democrats should shun it because it's bad.
This, I think, misses a key point in the transfer of patriotism from conservatives to liberals as the right wing loses its collective mind and becomes far more clear about how they really feel about the US as it exists 24 years into the 21st Century. Being able to claim love of country as a pillar of your political brand is an outsized advantage and a worthwhile strategy to appeal to nonpolitical folks and and low-information voters who for years and years have been told that Democratic candidates are seeking to undermine the American empire. These people see patriotism as inherently good. That's what matters.
Patriotism can be such an effective way to draw more people into the anti-fascist caucus, even if those people don't know they are part of such a coalition, or that their votes are being used to thwart the fascist menace. For as much as I've written about the rise of fascism in the western world, I would never suggest Democrats run around screaming from the rooftops about fascism. Americans have no conception of what fascism is, or even where it's gained power. If we can espouse patriotism and use these folks' votes to beat back the fascists, we must do so. This might be the most cynical point I've ever made on BFT, but I believe it's a winning strategy. To deny the gift Republicans have given the Democratic Party in handing over patriotism would constitute political malpractice. It would be yet another case of the left prioritizing purity over winning elections – something conservatives have never, ever done. They now own the federal courts because of it.
The Harris campaign seems uniquely interested in winning, which is why Kamala Harris' DNC acceptance speech was in no way geared to the left. She wants to win the presidency more than she wants to give folks on the left warm, fuzzy feelings. Politics is a game; someone has to win and someone has to lose. The winner gets to wield power and shape the future. The loser gets nothing. In the American political system, it is a zero sum game. You better win it.
It is to Harris' great credit that she positioned herself as the America-loving candidate going up against a man who detests the the United States and its people – even those who fawn over him and pledge their everlasting love for his anti-American agenda. If she has to become the patriot in the race while knowing the pitfalls of patriotism and how it's been used by the worst of the worst, so be it.
So yes, patriotism is still the last vestige of a scoundrel. It's a hell of a political advantage though. And it's one Kamala Harris – who, again, is interested in winning – could ride to the White House. The thing about scoundrels: They win.
Follow Denny Carter on BlueSky at @cdcarter13.bsky.social and on Threads at @CDCarter13.
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