“The people of Poland, the people of America, and the people of Europe still cry out: ‘We want God!'” (President Trump)

by Jonathan Ekene Ifeanyi

U.S. President Donald Trump waves along with Polish President Andrzej Duda as U.S. first lady Melania Trump and Poland's first lady Agata Kornhauser-Duda stand by in Warsaw, Poland, on Thursday, July 6, 2017.

“The people of Poland, the people of America, and the people of Europe still cry out: ‘We want God,'” President Trump said during his speech in Poland, to the thunderous applause of the crowd, who frequently broke out into chants of “Donald Trump! Donald Trump!” or “USA! USA!” during the speech. On the first leg of his journey to Europe for the G-20 conference, Trump made a stop in Poland to show his support of the country and to reaffirm the principles that bind the U.S. and Poland together. Trump said the survival of the West was at risk, as he lashed out at "hostile forces" ranging from Islamic terrorism to aggressive Western secularism that makes mockery of religion and denies the existence of God, and so on.

During his speech in Poland, Trump took the leftist agenda to task by pointing out how religion, Western culture and “values” are under attack every day, and that westerners must fight back to save them.

“Americans, Poles, and the nations of Europe value individual freedom and sovereignty. ...We must work together to counter forces, whether they come from inside or out, from the south or the east, that threaten over time to undermine our values and to erase the bonds of culture, faith and tradition that make us who we are,” Trump told the crowd.

He also used his speech to highlight how Poland has experienced some dark times (thanks to Soviet Communism), but that together, Poland and the United States would stand together and fight to preserve the West from all the forces of evil that attack them.

“Just as Poland could not be broken, I declare for the world to hear that the West will never ever be broken and our values will prevail, our people will thrive, and our civilization will triumph,” Trump said in one of the most powerful lines of his speech.

The speech reads, partly:

“...And when the day came on June 2nd, 1979, and one million Poles gathered around Victory Square for their very first mass with their Polish Pope, that day, every communist in Warsaw must have known that their oppressive system would soon come crashing down. (Applause.) They must have known it at the exact moment during Pope John Paul II's sermon when a million Polish men, women, and children suddenly raised their voices in a single prayer. A million Polish people did not ask for wealth. They did not ask for privilege. Instead, one million Poles sang three simple words: "We Want God!"” (Applause.)

“In those words, the Polish people recalled the promise of a better future. They found new courage to face down their oppressors, and they found the words to declare that Poland would be Poland once again.

“As I stand here today before this incredible crowd, this faithful nation, we can still hear those voices that echo through history. Their message is as true today as ever. The people of Poland, the people of America, and the people of Europe still cry out "We want God!"” (Applause.)

“Together, with Pope John Paul II, the Poles reasserted their identity as a nation devoted to God. And with that powerful declaration of who you are, you came to understand what to do and how to live. You stood in solidarity against oppression, against a lawless secret police, against a cruel and wicked system that impoverished your cities and your souls. And you won. Poland prevailed. Poland will always prevail.” (Applause: “Donald Trump! Donald Trump! Donald Trump!”)

Again:“Our adversaries ...are doomed because we will never forget who we are. And if we don't forget who are, we just can't be beaten. Americans will never forget. The nations of Europe will never forget. We are the fastest and the greatest community. There is nothing like our community of nations. The world has never known anything like our community of nations.

“We write symphonies. We pursue innovation. We celebrate our ancient heroes, embrace our timeless traditions and customs, and always seek to explore and discover brand-new frontiers.

“We reward brilliance. We strive for excellence, and cherish inspiring works of art that honor God. We treasure the rule of law and protect the right to free speech and free expression.” (Applause.)

Trump pointed to Poland, which in the last century endured Nazi and Soviet occupations, as an example of resolve. “The story of Poland is the story of a people who have never lost hope, who have never been broken, and who have never forgotten who they are,” he said.

He suggested that a lack of collective resolve could doom an alliance that had endured through the cold war.

“As the Polish experience reminds us, the defence of the west ultimately rests not only on means but also on the will of its people to prevail,” he said at the site of the 1944 uprising against the Nazis. “The fundamental question of our time is whether the west has the will to survive.”

Trump also denounced Islamic terrorism during his speech:

“We are fighting hard against radical Islamic terrorism, and we will prevail. We cannot accept those who reject our values and who use hatred to justify violence against the innocent. ...We must stand united against these shared enemies to strip them of their territory and their funding, and their networks, and any form of ideological support that they may have. ...Our borders will always be closed to extremism and terrorism,” he said.

Guardian said Trump, who delivered the speech on Thursday before flying to Hamburg for the G20 summit and bilateral meetings with the leaders of China, Russia and Germany, painted a picture of the West facing existential challenges in the effort to “defend our civilisation” from terrorism, bureaucracy and the erosion of traditions.

The crowd expressed its sympathies ahead of Trump’s address, chanting the name of a Law and Justice politician as he took his seat and chanting “thieves” and “traitors” at opposition politicians as they entered the event’s VIP area. Trump’s address was regularly interrupted by chants of “Donald Trump!” and “USA! USA!”, though he hit a less popular note when he praised the contribution to Poland’s freedom of Lech Walesa, the former dissident, president and Nobel Peace Prize winner, who has long been denounced by Law and Justice leaders as a traitor and Communist informant.

Crowd in Poland chants 'Donald Trump' after POTUS declares "The West will never, ever be broken. Our values will prevail."

Seen in Poland.

For the first time Trump said he “stood by” article 5 of the Nato charter – the provision requiring members to defend each other from attack – but he coupled that much-sought promise with a fresh attack on unnamed Nato states for “failing to meet their full and fair financial obligations on defence spending”.

He claimed his tough criticism of those states that had not met the Nato target of raising defence spending to 2% of GDP was paying off, with billions more being committed to defence across Europe. 

He made a rare criticism of Russia, accusing Moscow of “destabilising activities in Ukraine and elsewhere”, and claiming Vladimir Putin was supporting “hostile regimes including Syria and Iran.” 

Already many journalists, because of this speech, have given the impression that Trump is  "anti-Russia". But what did Trump really mean by this criticism? 

Iran and Russia are the two most important supporters of Syrian strongman Bashar Assad. Trump takes very different approaches toward Iran and Russia when it comes to Syria. In fact the Senate passed a bill Wednesday, June 14, that would strip Trump of the power to remove sanctions on Russia without congressional approval—which gives the impression that Trump is indeed a "Pro-Russia".

Trump has been candid about his distrust of Tehran, but he has been less critical — sometimes even supportive — of Moscow.

He is a recurring and vocal critic of Iran. He opposes a nuclear deal struck in 2015 between Iran and a group of major powers including the Obama administration, calling it the "worst deal ever" and vowing to "rip it up."

On February 3, 2017 Trump tweeted: “Iran is playing with fire — they don't appreciate how "kind" President Obama was to them. Not me!”

In a May speech in Saudi Arabia, he condemned Iran for supporting militias, terrorists and other extremist groups. "Among Iran's most tragic and destabilizing interventions have been in Syria. Bolstered by Iran, Assad has committed unspeakable crimes," he said.

But with Russia, Trump took a more positive tone. He has said that having a good relationship with Russia is a good thing, and that only "stupid people" would disagree. “Things will work out fine between the U.S.A. and Russia. At the right time everyone will come to their senses & there will be lasting peace!” he tweeted on April 13, 2017. 

Today's Russia is not an enemy of the West. On the contrary, the West is the enemy of itself. If Trump is really sincere in his campaign — and he is, surely — then he must understand that the things he's fighting against (Islamic terrorism, aggressive Western secularism, etc.) are also what Putin's Russia is currently fighting against — using another approach — and the both must cooperate to work together.  

The speech, apart from this rare criticism of Russia, his "St. John Paul II" rhetoric (Trump is completely ignorant of what John Paul II actually taught and encouraged) and few things like that, was good and had to be painful for liberals to hear. They spent so much time fighting against Trump because they knew that he would actually stand up to them and stop their agenda — and in the end they failed, indeed woefully. As Jonathon Van Maren of LifeSiteNews rightly observes, “Trump’s speech in Warsaw is perhaps one of the clearest calls for the defense of Western Civilization and its fundamental roots in Christianity and the culture and traditions it created delivered by any Western politician in several decades. He points out the enemy, warns that the West is under threat, points to our Christian heritage as both a defense and worth defending, and highlights the long struggle against the Evil Empire as evidence that where the will exists, good can triumph over evil. The speech was, quite simply, so eloquent I found it difficult to excerpt it for the sake of this column — and those who read my analyses of Trump’s campaign speeches, one of which I attended, will know that I found him generally callow, shallow, and crude. This speech is none of those things. Read it through, or watch the entire thing if you wish.” 

Related: 

• Hilary Clinton's worshipping of Satan...Her “Plan For Syria Would Lead to World War III”, says Trump.
• My perception of Europe after studying “European Culture and Politics”.