NPR tweeted the entire Declaration of Independence in 140-character chunks yesterday to celebrate Independence Day. But more than a few people thought that the tweets were a political stance against Donald Trump. Seriously.
The Declaration of Independence is one of the most cherished documents in the United States. We even make movies about it like it’s the Ark of the Covenant. But some Trump supporters were a bit confused yesterday, and saw phrases like “unworthy the Head of a civilized nation” as biased. They assumed that NPR was blasting the current president rather than King George in 1776.
NPR has been reading the Declaration of Independence on air in a tradition that dates back 29 years. And in fairness, the Declaration of Independence is a pretty anti-authoritarian document. So it makes sense that people might believe that it’s a statement against all tyrants.
But you’d think that people who want to “make America great again” might recognize the words of the Declaration of Independence. I guess not.
The line about the right of the people to abolish the current government and form a new one struck a chord with some Trump enthusiasts.
And some people were particularly offended by the line about King George being an “unworthy” leader of a civilized nation, believing that perhaps NPR was talking about a different tyrant:
Some Trump supporters even called the Declaration of Independence “trash”:
While others assumed that the word “obstructed” might be a little too close to the charges of “obstruction” against President Trump:
And even after it was pointed out that NPR was simply tweeting the Declaration of Independence, some people still saw an anti-Trump political motivation in the whole process:
Because apparently NPR needs more “balance,” maybe by reading out the arguments made by supporters of King George in 1776?
Yes, some Trump supporters believe that you gotta hear both sides. If you’re going to tweet out the Declaration of Independence, why not The Art of the Deal or other texts written by authoritarians? You don’t want to be seen as biased now, do you?
But I guess this is where we’re at as a country. The nation’s most treasured texts are being interpreted as protests against the president. Which really makes you wonder what Trump supporters stand for. If the Declaration of Independence is now anti-American, what counts as patriotic?
Ah yes, a song about making American great again that has North Korean-levels of creepiness. That’ll do.
[NPR and Goth Ms. Fizzle and Alexandra Aimee]
Correction: This post originally had a typo that incorrectly identified King George as the fourth rather than the third. I regret my own idiocy.