Democrat Rep. Delia Ramirez (D., Ill.) is locked into a fierce fight with the White House over controversial remarks at the second annual Panamerican Congress held in Mexico, including declaring, “I’m a proud Guatemalan before I’m an American.” Ramirez does not deny making the remarks but insists that there is a double standard for “my white colleagues [who] identify as Irish-American, Italian-American, or Ukrainian-American to honor their ancestry.”Ramirez was also criticized for her criticism of the United States as being “addicted to war” and threatening the world with its “imperialism, militarization, conquest, control, competition in its attempt at domination.”
The White House criticized Ramirez as well as the appearance of other high-profile Squad members, Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Ayanna Pressley (D-MA): “These Democrats’ comments are despicable and underscore their commitment to putting Americans last.”
The comments of Ramirez have clearly struck a nerve on both sides. For my part, I am very proud of both my Irish-Sicilian background. My Sicilian grandparents came to this country at the turn of the century. They were deeply proud of their heritage but always insisted that their children identify as Americans first and foremost. As I discuss in my forthcoming book, Rage and the Republic: The Unfinished Story of the American Revolution (Simon & Schuster 2026), we share a common identity of a people who are joined by core principles of liberty and individual rights. This country is unique because it is composed largely of people who came here to embrace a new identity of shared values.
I was surprised that Ramirez did not simply say that ranking was a poor choice of words. There is a difference between calling oneself a Guatemalan-American and saying that you are Guatemalan first and an American second. She has often publicly discussed how she is “the wife of a DACA recipient. I am the daughter of Guatemalan working immigrants,” including a mother who crossed the Rio Grande while pregnant. It is a harrowing story of many who came to this country to seek a new identity and a better life. My grandparents came to this country in the filthy hold of a wooden ship where immigrants died and two gave birth. What drove them was the promise of a new start in a nation based on freedom and opportunity. This country has never had prouder Americans.
The anger over Ramirez is not about how she defines herself, but about what it is to be an American. It is a shared identity, an article of faith that defines us all. That does not mean that Ramirez does not love this country. You can criticize this country and still love it. However, she should also realize how her ranking insults many citizens who cherish their heritage but embrace their core identity as Americans.
Yes.. a HUGE DIfference.. Night & day!!!! ‘ TY, Prof Turley for spelling it out: ‘..There is a difference between calling oneself a Guatemalan-American and saying that you are Guatemalan first and an American second…’ THERE IS NO WAY TO CHOP LOGIC AROUND THIS.. Ramirez knew Exactly what she was saying… It’s people like her that are subtley trying to destroy the USA.. One cannot serve 2 Masters… Time for her to walk the plank out of Our Sacred Congress… period.
“We the People of the United States…secure the Blessings of Liberty to OURSELVES and OUR POSTERITY….”
– American Founders, 1789
Naturalization Acts of 1790, 1795, 1798, 1802
United States Congress, “An act to establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization,” March 26, 1790
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, That any Alien being a free white person, who shall have resided within the limits and under the jurisdiction of the United States for the term of two years, may be admitted to become a citizen thereof….
– United States Congress
*. Rep Delia Ramirez is the daughter of undocumented Guatemalan parents. She speaks the truth. She is a Guatemalan citizen serving in congress. She has not naturalized.
She is part of the “squad” in Chicago. Her platform is social welfare.
She was born here. Her mother crossed the Rio Grande when she was pregnant. She’s a U.S. Citizen.
“She was born here. Her mother crossed the Rio Grande when she was pregnant. She’s a U.S. Citizen.”
We’ll see about that.
Soon 2 be determined. Nonetheless she’s a Guatemalan citizen by inheritance. She speaks the truth.
A Nation of Immigrants?!?
It’s a world of immigrants. Has been for something approaching 120-180 thousand years. Science still draws a blank when attempting to finger who was it exactly that discovered North America. The Chinese, the Vikings, the Asiatic Natives, the Italians, the Knights Templar…
The problem is, there is no incentive to become an American citizen. First off, one has to be willing to allow this government to seize a large portion of one’s own income as “voluntary requirement” tax under penality of law, or go to the big house cooler where they will still take it away from you. Second issue is, the government, no matter who’s running it, ends up dolling out our tax money to subsidize the “whatever” Americans. And there are a lot of “whatever” Americans.
Then after you, the potential American citizen who just arrived here will find out, once you become a citizen and begin to start a family, work hard, gain meaningful employment, and become a respectable law abiding member of American society, you wake up to discover that as a citizen earning a livable income, nothing is given to “you” for free, as you are now a part of an American society from which the government takes your money as a parasitic host for those in power to provide someone else with your income who didn’t become a citizen or didn’t choose to earn their own income, perhaps lives on the other side of the planet, or has the gout and needs a cane on your dime. Can’t hear and needs you to buy them a readable telephone, or a new pill, or a CPAP. Perhaps needs a walker, or better yet one of those fold out motorized chairs to zip around Wallyworld, or subsidized rent; subsidized housing, or free drugs and a place to use them if in California, or three square meals a day at the local school all paid for from county tax funds using your income.
Not to debate there are no charitable needs, but as every checkbook holder knows, there is only so much in the balance, so no we can’t afford a new car this year kids… And with only 40% of the American populace paying any income tax, well you know who makes up the difference. You!
By and far it’s a more successful means of paying for votes than George Washington passing out his home distilled whiskey at the polls. And most of those on the receiving end of your income feel duty bound to vote for the hand that feeds them as a reward for having given them all of “your” income.
it would seem something is askew with this picture.
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-Oddball
“Take it easy Big Joe, some of these people got sensitive feelings.”
Georgie, when you stop lying, then we’ll stop calling you a serial liar. But since you are a sociopathic serial liar, that’s not going to happen, now is it? Toodles!!!
Nobody cares, even Trump is also a compulsive liar and we love him.
“Nobody cares, even Trump is also a compulsive liar and we love him.”
I always love how Trump simply “lies”. Democrats “exaggerate”, “misremember”, “misspeak”, but Trump only “lies”. Nice try Shirley.
Are you seriously white knighting for freaking George? Have some self respect, please.
My parents were American missionaries in South Africa where I was born and my birth is registered. I have South African citizenship by birth, US citizenship by blood. I am an African-American. Although I am white I am probably the only real African-American most people have met.
We moved back to the US when I was 3 months old and as I became older I quickly learned that because I am white I I’m not allowed to check the Black/African-American box. For me using the term African-American has always been racist because the assumption is that all African Americans are black just as the assumption that “Asian-Americans” are all yellow is racist.
My solution has always been simple. I check the “other” box and write “American”. If there was an option of “European-American” I might have considered checking that because my bloodline on both sides is Scandinavian, Norwegian to be exact. However European-American is never an option.
My family, all born in the United States, check the “Native-American” box whenever that is an option. After all they were born here and therefore they are natives. When that is not an option they all do as I do, check the “other” box and write in American.
Now, do we all realize how stupid this is yet?
If you really push the issue. The America First crowd will cite God first then party, then country. Is it really America first?
The point Mr. Turley is making is only regarding Ms. Ramirez’s ranking of her Guatemalan heritage above her American heritage, not whether she puts Guatemala OR American above God.
Is God a country? Nice try loser.
So a few MAGA got offended because she ranked her heritage first. Big deal. The America First “movement” is nothing more than a reconfigured white supremacist fantasy.
Turley leaves out the key word that makes this issue American. This is a nation of immigrants. I can understand why she chose to rank her Guatemalan heritage first. It’s an act of defiance against the current administration’s anti-immigrant policies. The theme of Trump’s administration has been about purging immigrants even legal ones out because some folks like Stephen Miller want a whiter less mixed America. He’s a big fan of the “great replacement theory” and it explains his aggressive push to purge as many immigrants and obvious foreign looking people.
MAGA, not all of them, but an increasing number are becoming more comfortable making their racist views known. Because the political enviroment of the Republican party seems very accomodating to their views.
Ironically Trump’s wife would be subject to scrutiny under Trump’s immigration policies. If she lied on her visa application she would be eligible for deportation and revocation of her citizenship. It’s never going to happen, but lucky for her she will never face the kind of scrutiny others like her will under Trump’s immigration policies.
You’re kidding me, right? George the serial liar and prevaricator is back. Hey George, after weeks of you lying and obfuscating about the non-existent Maxwell testimony and conviction, plus your complete face plant trying to redefine perjury, why do you think that you have any credibility here at all? A normal person would be too embarrassed to show her face again, but it seems that continued lying is too important to you.
Question for loser George here, do you and Gigi have a special key that you press to insert “MAGA”? It’s like every other word in your low intelligence rants is MAGA. I don’t know if either of you noticed, but we had this thing called an election last year, and Trump won. It would seem that here in reality MAGA isn’t the slur that you think that it is.
Dear Mr. Turley, I just noticed my typo: should read “two Masters”…sorry!!!!
Dear Mr. Turley, like GEB, my German, Swedish and Swiss ancestors came here for a better life. Yes, they came through Ellis Island and moved to Belvidere, Illinois as the Swedish Lutheran minister, in Chicago, told them where to find work. Grandma spoke German in their home, however all 6 siblings learned English and most lived a modest farm life. Others, like grandma, found work in factories. I am not sure what this representative was driving at, but, if she cherishes Guatemala over the USA, perhaps she should return there. A person cannot serve to masters. They will love one and hate the other.
Two things are ‘intersecting’ here. One is her claim that in saying she is Guatemalan first and American second is saying something similar to “white colleagues [who] identify as Irish-American, Italian-American, or Ukrainian-American to honor their ancestry.” It is not the same. To identify as Irish American, etc. (hyphen is usually used on adjective form) has usually not meant putting Irish, Italian or Ukrainian above being American. She should just ask her ‘white colleagues.’ The other is her claim that the US is “addicted to war” and threatening the world with its “imperialism, militarization, conquest, control, competition in its attempt at domination.” This is a widely shared view, and for some a conservative one, i.e., a Republic based non-imperial nation. But it needs a shared ‘American’ identity to work, just like any country needs some shared identity. As for whether Trump is indeed putting ‘America first’ in all he does is a question open to reasonable debate.
Ramirez had an out, had she only chosen to use it.
Online, I am always running into Spanish or Portuguese speakers who insist that “America” refers only to North and South America, which they view as a single continent. And that they have the right to call themselves Americans, just as much as we do.
So she could have argued that she meant that she was Guatemalan before she was a Western Hemispherean.
Democrat Rep. Delia Ramirez (D., Ill.) is proud of a country [Guatemala] where she would rather not live. Paying homage, even allegiance, to a culture and “homeland” never experienced is mystical ideation, an imagined conceit.
Deeply felt nostalgia for something never experienced points to a disease of the mind—“the psychological state of someone who has emotional and behavioral problems serious enough to require psychiatric intervention”—and these are the people running our government.
IRRATIONAL thought is the new battleground: the extreme-left emulates Marx’s lazy, but angry and dangerous, irrational conceit. The fight must be taken to these Cultural-Marxist Congressional subversives, and the White House is right to give Democrat Rep. Delia Ramirez (D., Ill.) the lambasting she deserves.
Imagine a conversation, for example, between Ms. Ramirez and Marco Rubio or Ted Cruz. Watch out for sparks. I’ll leave it to you to decide whether the views of a lot of the citizens of the nations in Central and South America are shaped in part by having largely escaped the ravages of two world wars and a Cold War that We The People had to overcome.
Hyphenated Americans were one of the things the Founders sought to exclude from eligibility to the presidency when engrafting the “natural born Citizen” restriction into the Constitution.
Precisely because—allegiance is ELSEWHERE!
“criticism of the United States as being “addicted to war” and threatening the world with its “imperialism, militarization, conquest, control, competition in its attempt at domination.”
Well, in fairness, Guatemala isn’t doing that.
Well, in truth, Guatemala isn’t doing ANYthing of any interest or value on the world stage, nothing to help or improve itself, except [pro]creating a problem for the United States and its taxpayers.
Imperialism has always been on the earth—part of the that long-ago culture that Guatemalans are so proud of?—It was IMPERIAL, and blood thirsty.
Come off your Trojan Horse.
Dianna,
True. Guatemala was part of the large Mayan empire and it was certainly bloodthirsty. The same may be said of the Aztec and Incan empires. It is fashionable to pretend they were peace loving societies before the Spanish came, but it wasn’t so.
Professor Turley writes, “That does not mean that Ramirez does not love this country. You can criticize this country and still love it.”
I beg to differ. She clearly hates America, and so do the nasty ignoramuses that voted for her.
It’s one the sicknesses of the left, consumed by an identity they think makes them special. People who are Italian American, Irish American or Ukrainian American consider themselves Americans first. There may be some people who are different, but even the Jews I know who are most pro Israel, consider themselves Americans first. If you are Guatemalan first, fine, but don’t represent Americans. Go to Guatemala. Who is stopping you?
I share your sentiment. Unfortunately for us, lefties are hypocrites as well as liars. She’ll stay here and mooch for her constituents.
In the great European immigration wave the immigrants were not just moving to America they were escaping the nations they moved from. Just imagine the fear of the unknown that they felt but they were moved to leave their nation of birth with no doubt that anything would be better than this. They knew what it had been like back home and were grateful for the opportunity they found in America. Consequently they became proud to call themselves Americans. Imagine what the reaction from Democrats would be if a Republican immigrant from Russia said that she is a proud Russian before she is an American. The hissy fit would last for weeks. Let Ramirez go back to Guatemala where the sewers are backed up and healthcare is difficult to get in rural communities. She’s just doing what is expected of her to remain an upstanding member of The Democratic Socialist Party of America.