Progressives Will Destroy The Big Red MAGA Tent
"The Greatest Show on Earth" was destroyed by progressives.
Ringling Bros. Circus and Barnum & Bailey Circus merged in 1919 to create the iconic traveling circus that entertained billions for nearly a century. Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus became a symbol of Americana like apple pie, baseball, and blue jeans.
Then, in the early 2000s, the leftist-powered organization PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), founded in 1980 by liberal activists Ingrid Newkirk and Alex Pacheco, set its sights on circuses for alleged animal rights abuses. PETA has a long history of using fraudulent lawfare to attack private enterprises. The organization launched a smear campaign against Ringling Bros. using carefully edited undercover videos, lawfare, outrageous protests, celebrity endorsements, and lobbying in Congress. Accusations of animal cruelty gained traction, public support dwindled, and by 2017, the circus closed its doors. While it reemerged in 2023, trading animal performers for human performers, it's a faint shadow of its former glory.
It's a pattern as old as time. Progressives figure out what they hate and try to tear it down, marching forward aimlessly in the name of "progress," trampling traditional norms. It is the opposite of conservatism. Conservatives know how to build beautiful things that can weather the test of time. We figure out what we love and conserve its beauty and prestige.
That is my concern with Turning Point USA's AmericaFest and the overall future of the MAGA movement. Progressives will tear down one of American history's most significant political movements.
Turning Point USA, a nonprofit organization founded by conservative activist Charlie Kirk, hosted its 3rd annual AmericaFest last weekend. It's a pep rally for conservative politics. The event has an expansive reach among college students and young adults.
The speaker list was a mixed bag. President-elect Donald Trump and his son, Don Jr., commentators Tucker Carlson, Steve Bannon, Michael Knowles, and Jack Posobiec, Congressman Byron Donalds, Senator Josh Hawley, former Congressman Matt Gaetz, Pastor John Amanchukwu. Great. No complaints. Commentators Patrick Bet-David, Brandon Tatum, Sage Steele, Brett Cooper. Not my cup of tea, but solid. Then I see Ben Shapiro. I have strong disagreements with the Daily Wire co-founder. Ben does not love America. He loves what America can do for Israel. However, he and Kirk have a long history together, so I understand the invite. Libertarian author Jeffrey Tucker received some microphone time. Eh, okay. Libertarians are wrong on some key issues, but Jeffrey Tucker talking to young conservatives is palatable.
What left a bitter taste in my mouth was the invitation to progressive commentator Cenk Uygur. The founder of the media outlet The Young Turks received a standing ovation from a presumably conservative audience.
WOW! The crowd at America Fest just gave Cenk Uygur a standing ovation to welcome him.
— George (@BehizyTweets) December 21, 2024
Never in my life did I think this would be happening. Respect to Cenk for showing up. pic.twitter.com/QEpSBj95o7
This is classic conservative behavior. On the heels of one of the most significant Presidential election triumphs in the last 50 years, conservatives want to extend olive branches to the same godless progressives who wanted Donald Trump behind bars for 700 years.
Inviting Cenk to AmericaFest will not achieve the desired outcome Charlie Kirk thinks. To his credit, Kirk is a sound political strategist, but this strategy could be a miscalculation. He wants to influence some of Cenk's viewers, creating a coalition of young America First patriots and future Republican voters.
Charlie Kirk's strategy of playing nice with ideological opponents might sound like a clever way to make conservatism the big tent everyone feels comfortable under. But when you start bending over backward to bring in the skeptics, you risk losing the people who pitched that tent in the first place.
Like any political movement, the Make America Great Again movement thrives on a certain kind of clarity—a bedrock of principles that lets the faithful know what they're fighting for. Start tinkering with that, and suddenly, your strongest supporters are looking at you like you've invited the enemy to dinner without consulting the guest list.
This isn't just Charlie Kirk's problem; it's the eternal balancing act of political ambition. How do you widen the circle without turning it into a square? How do you welcome liberals and progressives into the mix without turning off conservatives? Or worse, turning the conservatives into progressives?
What Kirk is attempting to do is a noble endeavor. It's a biblical endeavor, but I am skeptical of the long-term forecast.
All it will do is anger the bases of both sides. Cenk is facing backlash from his supporters, claiming his media network is cozying up to the right wing.
#MAGA (excluding ad hominem) voters for their support for Trump who is absolutely THE establishment. If you’re there to provide clicks for their right wing narratives WITHOUT making sure your own is properly represented, then you’re saying Charlie Fckn Kirk is the ideal
— King Black Progressive (@KingProgressive) December 26, 2024
Charlie and Turning Point USA are getting roasted by conservatives for embracing Cenk.
AGAIN, you useless IDIOTS: Cenk disagrees with you on 98% of the issues and wanted your side arrested sooner!
— Yossi Gestetner (@YossiGestetner) December 22, 2024
There are millions of people (and dozens of influencers) closer to your side than Cenk who should be big-tented into the discussion before him, you FOOLS!
MORONS! pic.twitter.com/8e4jP4MxS1
Unity is not always good, and division is not always bad. What are people uniting over? What is dividing people? Apostle Paul's letter to the Corinthians warns them not to be yoked together with those who do not believe in The Most High God. Righteousness and lawlessness. Oil and water. They do not mix. A conglomerate of warring worldviews under one tent will burn the whole thing down. People who believe killing a baby is murder cannot coalesce with people who believe killing a baby is healthcare. Worshippers of Jesus Christ cannot form a union with worshippers of skin color.
This is why Glenn Beck and Michael Knowles delivered the two best speeches at AmericaFest.
"We have to look for the light that is between us. We have to know who the good guys are, who the bad guys are," said Blaze Media founder Glenn Beck. "We have to make sure those who wear masks are not coming in and claiming to be part of this team and they have no intention of being on the team."
Daily Wire personality Michael Knowles laid some ground rules for all the new passengers who made the Trump Train standing-room-only. "So we have a lot of new people, don't we? We have a lot of new people who moved over to the right, which is terrific. I welcome them and their support and especially their votes. I think that's all great. But while this shift in the electorate is mostly a happy development, it does entail some risk. There is always a risk when a political party becomes a big tent. The risk is that newcomers will change us more than we change them. That we'll lose our identity. There is a risk that the party's beliefs and goals will become confused. So I think it's important to clear some things up as this new American majority coalition begins to move forward together."
Knowles continues, "So what do we believe? First and foremost, we believe in God."
To further clarify Michael's point, we believe in the God. The One True God. The Most High God. Not the God of money, or the Democrat God, or the Republican God.
The MAGA movement is not merely a political coalition but a cultural and spiritual call to return to the founding principles that once made America great. At the center is a belief and acknowledgment of The One True God. The nation's founders, from conservative John Adams to liberal Thomas Jefferson, all acknowledged the existence of our Creator. We want Bible study to be commonplace in public schools again. We want there to be an understanding that capitalism and commerce are vehicles to live out the tenets given to us in Scripture, not merely to raise the GDP or acquire more cars and televisions.
As a professed Catholic and MAGA activist, Charlie Kirk should know and understand this. Progressives like Cenk Uygur and his TYT cohort Ana Kasparian, Ingrid Newkirk, Alex Pacheco, and Ben Shapiro are why the soul of America has been corrupted.
Big tents are great if all you care about is packing the house. But when it comes to principle and faith, big tents do not lead followers down the narrow path.
