There's a reason our children are no longer taught about America's Founders in great detail. Their knowledge of American exceptionalism is cursory, at best. Today, our children's American history lessons begin with more focus around the 1900s.
Why would that be?
"Pat, you run a school," Glenn said on his radio program Wednesday. "How many articles have we seen in the last year where schools are now saying they don't need to teach American history prior to 1900?"
"A lot," came Pat's reply.
The reason for the shift mirrors the reason for some of America's biggest problems today: progressivism. Progressives controlling public schools have literally rewritten the history books.
"America as we know it starts with Theodore Roosevelt," Glenn said. "The new founding father is Theodore Roosevelt. It's not George Washington."
How do we ensure future generations understand and revere America's founding principles? Glenn took to the chalkboard to explain.
Enjoy this complimentary clip from The Glenn Beck Program:
Below is a rush transcript of this segment, it might contain errors:
GLENN: We've talked a long time about the mushy middle in America. And that it's the mushy middle that is where the lion's share of people are.
If you look at the scale of statism that I've -- that I've put out here on the chalkboard, if you happen to be watching us on TV. But I'll try to talk you through it if you're just on radio.
The scale of control with the Articles of Confederation and anarchy on one side and, you know, ISIS, Nazi Germany, North Korea, Venezuela, on the other side, and then the Articles of Confederation is then moving towards statism, Constitution, then Andrew Jackson, then Lincoln, then the Fabian socialists, Theodore Roosevelt, the fed in 1913, Woodrow Wilson, FDR, George Bush, Obama. Where is the middle of that scale?
What's in the middle of that scale?
PAT: Teddy Roosevelt.
GLENN: Teddy Roosevelt. Okay. The new American century. Teddy Roosevelt. The progressive -- the beginning of the progressive.
Now, hear me out on this. I think we -- the middle here is here. That Theodore Roosevelt is the center. And you have the giant state of FDR, where remember it was price controls, it was giant trade barriers, it was control of the state over labor many times, it was massive control, unlike we have seen.
Theodore Roosevelt is the center. And what was Theodore Roosevelt? This is the way he was imaged.
We all love parks. We all love parks. And, you know what, the states can't really handle those parks and keep them like the government can. We all love parks. Let's take care of the environment. You know what, don't we all love babies? We all love babies. And we're all against alcoholism and drug abuse, we need to have the FDA so we know what's going into your baby. We know what's happening with drugs. And nobody is going to get, you know, addicted into cocaine. Coca-Cola is a gateway drug.
I believe the center of this country is Theodore Roosevelt. They are not our Founders. They're Theodore Roosevelt. And if they lean any way, they lean towards the scale of FDR. And they lean towards, "You know what, I'm losing my job. The government's got to do something." They may say they're against the fed, but the average people are not against the fed. They don't even know what the fed does. They want the fed to be able to control the money and make that money so I have more money at home. They don't even know how it works or what it does, but I want to make sure that I have enough money.
JEFFY: Just do whatever you do.
GLENN: Just do what you do, right? Not paying attention.
So the country is going to vote -- the parameters are the Roosevelts. Those are the bookends. Theodore Roosevelt, the beginning of progressivism, to FDR, heavy statism. That's where we'll vote. And we've just voted two people in the FDR category. Hillary Clinton is FDR. Trump could be Woodrow Wilson, where he silences people and throws them into jail if you have a differing opinion. He could be Woodrow Wilson. But she's probably FDR.
Where, Obama loaded it with radicals, revolutionaries, and Black Panthers and people who wanted to have violence in the streets. He loaded it with communists and Marxists. I don't believe Hillary Clinton is a Marxist. She's a statist. She's somebody who believes in what FDR did and reversing the Bill of Rights. But she's still just a statist. She's not a Marxist.
That leaves this entire 125 years prior to Theodore Roosevelt as worthless history, which is exactly what our schools are saying now.
Pat, you run a school. How many articles have we seen in the last year where schools are now saying they don't need to teach American history prior to 1900?
PAT: Yeah, a lot.
GLENN: Why? Because America as we know it starts with Theodore Roosevelt.
PAT: Uh-huh.
GLENN: The new founding father is Theodore Roosevelt. It's not George Washington. So now our path is, A, we cannot move. We cannot move. If we move, the first 125 years of our American history and all of those principles are gone forever. They are gone forever. So we must concentrate on our children, on teaching this. We must concentrate ourselves as broadcasters on teaching this, holding true to those constitutional values and being absolutely unwavering.
Featured Image: Mount Rushmore National Memorial towers over the South Dakota landscape on October 1, 2013 near Keystone, South Dakota. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
