Trump Denounces Socialism in Riveting Speech

U.S. President Donald Trump recently delivered a rallying cry against socialism, in an impassioned speech given at Florida International University. He spoke to a Venezuelan-American audience, many of whom had experienced the absence of freedom and opportunities while living under a socialist regime. At one point during the February 18^th speech, a voice is heard exclaiming, “God bless you!” to Trump, reflecting the anti-socialism sentiment in the room. In one of the most persuasive speeches of our time, Trump made his message clear. In America, socialism will not happen, for it delivers false promises and always gives rise to tyranny in the end.

People often have romanticized views of socialism, in part due to false narratives of the left and influences of the liberal media. However, the reality of socialism can be seen in what’s happening in Venezuela. Hungry kids rummage through trash for food due to widespread starvation, hospital patients are being operated on without anesthesia or are being left to die, babies and children are going without medical treatment and vaccinations, suicide and violence are rising, scores of people are unemployed, inflation has risen ten million percent, some of the military is beginning to defect, and their main oil industry is in shambles. People are fleeing the country in droves. Trump explains how people become hooked on the promises of socialism. “Socialism promises unity, but it delivers hatred and it delivers division. Socialism promises a better future, but it always returns to the darkest chapters of the past,” he said.

Trump explains, “For decades, the socialist dictatorships of Cuba and Venezuela have propped each other up in a very corrupt bargain. Venezuela gave Cuba oil. In return, Cuba gave Venezuela a police state run directly from Havana.” Trump continues. “But this is a much different day, and those days are over. The ugly alliance between the two dictatorships is coming to a rapid end.” Trump talks about a new future and explains, “We know that socialism is not about justice, it’s not about equality, it’s not about lifting up the poor. Socialism is about one thing only: power for the ruling class. And the more power they get, the more they crave.”

President Trump’s fierce stance against socialism is something people haven’t witnessed since the days of Ronald Reagan. Like Trump, the former U.S. president understood the negative consequences of government-controlled societies. Reagan famously shared, “Socialism only works in two places: Heaven where they don’t need it and hell where they already have it.” Trump’s “give the people the truth” attitude is refreshing. Moreover, his stance against socialism demonstrates his commitment to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” as expressed in the United States Declaration of Independence. Had the former President been in the audience for Trump’s speech, undoubtedly, he would have given Trump a well-deserved standing ovation.