“Honor, justice, and humanity, forbid us tamely to surrender that freedom which we received from our gallant ancestors, and which our innocent posterity have a right to receive from us. We cannot endure the infamy and guilt of resigning succeeding generations to that wretchedness which inevitably awaits them if we basely entail hereditary bondage on them.” —Thomas Jefferson (1775)
This is a good week, amid the loss of an iconic young American Patriot, to solemnly contemplate our commitment to our nation’s irrevocable foundation of Liberty, the unalienable rights of man as enumerated in our Declaration of Independence enshrined in our Republic’s Constitution. We have a sacred obligation to “to support and defend” those rights, an obligation that ceases only with our death.
Today, September 17th, is a significant date on our Patriot Post calendar for two reasons.
The first reason, of course, is that it marks Constitution Day: the anniversary of the adoption of our Republic’s founding contract — that date in 1787 when our Constitution was signed by the Constitutional Convention delegates in Philadelphia.
Despite all the blood that has been shed in defense of Liberty since, too many of those occupying the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of our national and state governments today pay no homage to the essential obligations inherent in that historic document. Some have outright contempt for Rule of Law and utter disregard for their sworn oaths “to support and defend it. It is upon that oath of constitutional preservation that generations of American military Patriots have fought and died, while many of today’s politicians squander that sacrifice by abandoning their sworn obligations.
Our Constitution mandates that those elected to our legislatures are charged with the challenge of convincing “We, the People,” through lawful, rigorous, and open debate, that one position or another is in the best interest of all. But that process has been grossly adulterated in large measure by powerful Leftmedia platforms, which are demonstrably beholden primarily to the Left side of the political spectrum. That bias has empowered the politicos they favor to act more like authoritarians, and to aggressively seek to bypass the deliberative process and dictate that you must abide by their diktats.
To those who line up with them, we invoke the words of Samuel Adams in 1776 at the dawn of the fight for Liberty: “If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen!”
The second reason September 17 is important on our publishing calendar is that it marks the date we first published on the Web — remarkably, that was 29 years ago.
In 1996, back before the Internet and email were ubiquitous means of communication, I gathered a handful of modern-day Patriots to contemplate how we might best take the eternal message of Liberty to the largest number of fellow Patriots nationwide, at the least expense. As with any entrepreneurial startup, especially one that had no model to follow, there was considerable trial and error, and the commensurate heartburn.
At that time, we were four years removed from George H.W. Bush’s failure to continue the great American renewal launched by Ronald Reagan. Bush had been defeated in his reelection bid by a then-unknown young and charismatic Bill Clinton and his “co-president,” Hillary.
That inspired a sense of urgency to determine how to counter the relentless Leftmedia propaganda machine that would ultimately help ensure Clinton’s reelection. The leftist mainstream media had a chokehold on public opinion.
Rush Limbaugh had already launched his radio rebuttal to the Left and was leading the conservative ranks in that medium. An outfit called Fox News was testing the cable network possibilities as a conservative news platform. So what other front did we need to cover?
Freedom’s banner was waiting for its voice on a then-new communication medium that looked very promising — the Internet. In 1996, we answered that call, making us the oldest news and policy publication on the Web.
This year, we have already observed some important place markers as we approach our nation’s 250th celebration of American Liberty.
March 23rd was the 250th anniversary of Patrick Henry’s 1775 speech at the Second Virginia Convention, “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death.” Without his call to action, there may have been no American Revolution. As Thomas Jefferson later observed, “He was before us all in maintaining the spirit of the Revolution.”
Henry declared: “The question before the House is one of awful moment to this country. … For my own part, I consider it as nothing less than a question of freedom or slavery. … If we wish to be free … we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight! An appeal to arms and to the God of hosts is all that is left us! … There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations … who will raise up friends to fight our battle for us. The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. … Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!”
April 19th was the 250th anniversary of Patriots’ Day, and the opening salvos in the Battles of Lexington and Concord. Those volleys commenced with what poet Ralph Waldo Emerson later immortalized as “The Shot Heard Round the World.” With that shot, farmers, laborers, landowners, and statesmen alike brought upon themselves the sentence of death for treason. Those were high among the 10 most critical engagements of the Revolutionary War.
Upon hearing of those first shots in what would become an eight-year struggle for Liberty, Samuel Adams declared to fellow Patriot John Hancock, “What a glorious morning this is!”
Indeed, it was a glorious morning, and the sunrise each April 19th has remained so ever since.
From day one, our mission has been to extend the endowment of American Liberty bequeathed to us by generations of Patriots to the next generation. To effectively meet that obligation, we are charged with, first, advocating for individual rights and responsibilities; second, supporting the restoration of constitutional limits on government and the judiciary; and third, promoting free enterprise, national defense, and traditional American values, as outlined in our Statement of Principles.
Our mission and objectives rest on the foundation of this essential affirmation: “We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” We believe that all people are created with equal value and dignity, and that the Judeo-Christian faith is both the foundation upon which this affirmation rests and its eternal guardian.
Our mission is not framed as Right vs. Left, Conservative vs. Liberal, nor Republican vs. Democrat. Our mission and advocacy — and that of all genuine Patriots who embody the legacy and spirit of the Founders — is framed by our commitment to Liberty over tyranny. Above all, we are devoted to the Gospel framework for Liberty, irrevocably endowed by our Creator.
The most important guiding principles, the timeless wisdom that has motivated and stewarded our mission, would be these words from Jesus of Nazareth in John, chapter 8: “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” The last of those words is captured in our motto, Veritas vos Liberabit. That, combined with Christ’s words in Luke, chapter 12: “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.”
Second to those guiding words would be these from George Washington during the American Revolution. Regarding the fight for Liberty, he wrote, “Our cause is noble; it is the cause of mankind!” As it was then, is to this day, and will forever be.
As American Patriots, we have been blessed beyond calculation, and thus, we are called to give accordingly.
All said, the road to our 30th anniversary next year has been very challenging — not just because all business start-ups struggle and because managing a small business creates constant challenges, but because of the nature of the work we do. Sorting through the wasteland of detritus the Left leaves in its wake is a relentless task, as are our continual daily publishing deadlines — but we have never missed a deadline in all our years.
The result of this endeavor, thanks to the steadfast support of Patriots like you, and the tireless efforts of our devoted team of writers, editors, technical and creative staff, and support personnel, has been the creation of a very large fellowship of grassroots American Patriots, millions of brothers and sisters devoted to Liberty.
Finally, coming full circle to the murder of an iconic young Patriot, let me remind you about another irreplaceable icon, Rush Limbaugh. The conservative movement continued to grow after his death in 2021 and will continue to do so.
That is true in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s death. As clear evidence of his extended legacy, over the last six days, there have been more than 54,000 requests from high school and college students nationwide to start a TPUSA campus chapter or get involved with an existing chapter.
Both of these men laid strong foundations for their mission in support of American Liberty to continue long after they departed.
On behalf of our National Advisory Committee, thank you for standing with us. With a heart of gratitude, we are humbled to count you among our Patriot ranks.
God bless each and every one of you, and God bless our great nation.
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Pro Deo et Libertate — 1776
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Please join us in prayer for our nation — that righteous leaders would rise and prevail and we would be united as Americans. Pray for the protection of our uniformed Military Patriots, Veterans, First Responders, and their families. Lift up your Patriot Post team and our mission to support and defend our legacy of American Liberty and our Republic’s Founding Principles, in order that the fires of freedom would be ignited in the hearts and minds of our countrymen.
Thank you for supporting our nation’s premier journal of American Liberty.
