During President Barack Obama’s historic two-term presidency, he said and did many things. Hypothetically, a propagandist could reassemble ‘em to create a “factually accurate narrative” that completely misrepresents Obama’s time in office.
For example, what if I declared August 4 (Obama’s birthday) as “Barack Obama Day” with the following proclamation:
PROCLAMATION
President Barack Obama, or, as he was so often called, “Barack HUSSEIN Obama,” was the forerunner of the Trump presidency. In many ways, Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential run was directly inspired by Mr. Obama’s performance.
After making history in 2008 as America’s first half-white president, Barack HUSSEIN Obama pledged he would support traditional marriage (“Marriage is between a man and a woman,” he once said.). He also championed the “surveillance state,” secretly monitoring millions of civilian conversations. Most of all, he kept Americans safe from the scourge of Islamic terrorism with 542 drone strikes on top-secret targets, killing 3,797 people, including 324 civilians.
Barack HUSSEIN Obama also made his mark in pop culture, famously calling Kanye a “jackass.” He’s also a well-known fan of country music.
For all these reasons, we hereby declare August 4 to be Barack HUSSEIN Obama Day.
Every word I wrote I just wrote is completely true!
But it completely misrepresents who President Obama was — and what he stood for. The lies of omission and cherry-picked priorities create a false narrative. You know it and I know it!
It’s using the truth to disseminate lies.
Which is exactly what Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-Calif.) did when he proclaimed Feb. 6, 2026, as Ronald Reagan Day in the state of California — and he did so to promote amnesty for illegal immigrants.
It’s something we discussed in Sunday’s VIP column. (Sorry, ladies and gentlemen: Memberships has its privileges. If you want to be first to know, click here and become a VIP already.)
When you think of President Ronald Reagan’s best qualities, what comes to mind? Like, if you were to announce Ronald Reagan Day, what would you highlight?
You’d probably consider the rebirth of conservatism as the dominant American political philosophy, tax-cutting, “government isn’t the solution to the problem, government is the problem,” winning two landslide GOP elections, the Reagan military buildup, restoring American confidence, “peace through strength,” “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall,” and winning the Cold War.
Now, if you had to choose Reagan’s greatest missteps, your options are (mercilessly) limited: Iran-Contra, perhaps. The size of the federal deficit. Or the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, which offered amnesty to 3 million illegals, yet its promise of stopping future illegal immigration wasn’t just unfulfilled — it became a siren’s call for millions more.
By the time Joe Biden was president we were up to at least 14 million illegal immigrants; others estimated it was 20 million.
But hey, no mortal man is perfect — not even Ronaldus Magnus. Still, the history is what it is. Can’t change the past, right?
Reagan’s error on immigration became the reason why — for the next 30 years! — Republicans insisted that there’d be no further amnesty for illegal aliens until we “closed the border first.” In many ways, the broken promises of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 were what fueled today’s MAGA movement.
Only a self-serving, dishonest propagandist would rewrite history to make it one of Reagan’s greatest political accomplishments.
Yet here was Gov. Newsom’s proclamation:
PROCLAMATION
Though born in Illinois, President Ronald Reagan was a Californian at heart. With a sunny optimism and faith in the future, he moved millions around our country and the world. After working his way through college in the Midwest, President Reagan embarked on a successful acting career that led him to serve as the president of a major union, spokesman for conservative causes, governor of the State of California and eventually, president of the United States.
Even amid an assassination attempt just 69 days into his time in office, the President’s energy and spirit remained bright. President Reagan helped usher in a peaceful end to the Cold War and enacted comprehensive immigration reform that provided a path to citizenship for thousands of undocumented immigrants.
Today we hold President Reagan and his family in our hearts, especially as we continue their later work to support families dealing with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.
NOW THEREFORE I, GAVIN NEWSOM, Governor of the State of California, do hereby proclaim February 6, 2026, as “Ronald Reagan Day.”
At first blush, it was an utterly Orwellian attempt to rewrite history. But it was actually more than that:
Newsom was bastardizing Ronald Reagan’s memory to promote amnesty for today’s illegal aliens.
Because that proclamation wasn’t written by a PJ Media columnist to “illustrate absurdity by being absurd.” This was an official government proclamation from the state of California, issued by a man who yearns to be our next president.
If that proclamation is allowed to stand, Republicans have every right to fight fire with fire on August 4.
Feel free to cut and paste from above.
One Last Thing: 2026 is a critical year for America First: It began with Mayor Mamdani declaring war on “rugged individualism” and will reach a crescendo with the midterm elections. Nothing less than the fate of the America First movement teeters in the balance.
Never before have the political battlelines been so clearly defined. Win or lose, 2026 will transform our country.
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