Sermon - Thanksgiving - 1798 Connecticut

Nathan Strong (1748-1816) graduated from Yale in 1769, was ordained in 1774, and became pastor of First Church in Hartford. He served as chaplain in the Revolutionary Army, ran the “Connecticut Evangelical Magazine” from 1800 to 1815, and was one of the founders of the Connecticut Missionary Society. POLITICAL INSTRUCTION FROM THE PROPHECIES OF GOD’S WORD A SERMON PREACHED ON THE STATE THANKSGIVING NOV. 29, 1798 BY NATHAN STRONG, PASTOR OF THE NORTH PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT. PUBLISHED ACCORDING TO THE ACT OF CONGRESS, AND BY DESIRE OF THE HEARERS. A Thanksgiving Sermon Revelations xviii. 4. And I heard another voice from heaven saying, come out of here, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. Although the holy scriptures were not primarily written for a book of political instruction to mankind, they contain much which ought to be seriously studied by the rulers of a free and Christian people. The church and civil state are so connected in events which take place that the information God hath been pleased to give the former, may often be improved by the latter to great advantage. The whole divine government of men is with reverence to his church – to the interests of his kingdom, and the accomplishment of the purposes of his grace. The cabinet of earthly princes is subservient to the king of Zion; and the armies and the heroes of hostile nations, although they mean not to be thus considered and known not by whom they are girded, he calls his armies and his servants to execute the purposes of his counsel, and avenge him on his enemies who know not his name, or have departed from the faith which he gave them to keep. There have been sundry periods, some of which were pointed out in the sure word of prophecy, when the world has been convulsed with mighty revolutions, to answer some great designs in God’s moral and evangelical government. It was thus when his people Israel were removed to Canaan. It was thus antecedent to Christ’s birth and the propagation of Christianity. It was thus in the dissolution of the heathen Roman empire, by which so much Christian blood had been wantonly shed. It was early foretold, that it should be thus at the dissolution of anti-Christian Rome, with the civil and religious tyrannies depending on it. We have every reason to suppose the last of these periods to be far advanced, and that we now see and hear the commencement of those terrible judgments on mankind, by which this work of God will be concluded. If there be any serious believers in God, his government and the Christian religion, situated where the weight of theses judgments must fall, they can do no more than endeavor to preserve the purity of their own personal faith and practice, and pray God that he would preserve them from the miseries of a tumultuous state and from his heavy judgments. His wisdom and grace are able to bring such individuals, however situated, into his secret chambers, and keep them safely until the day of wrath be overpast. If there be any people so situated that they may possibly escape the weight of calamity (as it is hoped the people of this nation are), it becomes them to stand at a distance from the scene of plagues and not come into a state of intimacy, lest they be necessitated to drink the dregs of a very bitter cup. To such a people the exhortation of the text, which is inserted in the prophetic account of the destruction of Babylon, contains most important instruction political and religious. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and receive not of her plagues. In the proclamation which calls us to the duties of this day, there is the following very worthy passage, “At the same time, to review with humble admiration the course of events, as they are now passing on the great theatre of the world; and to contemplate the occurrences and revolutions in the divine and moral government, which are rapidly taking place at the present period, in such manner as to fill our minds with a heartfelt and thankful conviction of the superintending providence of the Most High, and of his general and influential government in all events; whereby we may be led to a grateful acknowledgement of his distinguishing goodness to our highly favored land and country, in the blessings which we peculiarly enjoy.” This is truly a period of wonderful events in the moral government of God; and they take place in such a manner and at such a period, as cannot fail, if we indeed Christian believers, to fill our minds with heartfelt and thankful conviction of superintending providence. God is now making himself known by the judgments which he executeth in the earth. He is now by the works of his providence, giving the ultimate, and that which will be the all-convincing evidence of the truth of the scriptures. There is but a little period to come compared with the past, in which infidelity will dare speak its sentiments. All considerate and good people see this already, and though there be some infidels against growing light, infinite wisdom permits them to rise up for two purposes; first, to fulfill more bloody judgments on apostate Christiendom than men of good hearts would wish to be the instruments of executing, although they know them to be just; and secondly, that by their avowed principles, practice, and the end to which providence will bring them, they may be a warning to future ages against infidelity. God teaches men by experience. Within the conclusion of a century, from this time, it will not be disputed what was meant by prophetic Babylon. Her great wickedness will be illustrated to universal knowledge by her great plagues. It will also appear, that infidelity was the instrument prepared by God for her punishment; that this infidelity naturally sprung out of her own corruption, or rather was the last stage of anti-Christian apostasy; and that having consumed itself and the parent which gave it birth, the judgments of God are finished. A new era will take place. Through the instruction of past experience, and the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, righteousness and peace will fill the earth. All the prophecies describe this succession of events. The past and present fulfillment of them, must remove them from wise minds, all doubt concerning the future. The ancient prophets, have interspersed in their writings, many predictions which are now fulfilling. The present period was foretold by all the prophetic seers, by David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the lesser prophets. It would not be difficult to select from these a multitude of predictions relating to the present day, and it is only a want of time, on the present occasion, which prevents my doing it. Daniel among the ancients may be called the father of prophecy both from the vast extent of his predictions, which reach down to the end of time, and from the exactness with which he marked all these great events in empire, by which the state of the church has been materially affected. His visions are an epitome of the history of the world. They are repeated in so many forms, and accompanied with such explanations, that a candid mind cannot deny them to be the wonderful truth of him who governs the universe, and holds the nations and all their counsels in his hand. In the language of prophecy, tyrannical governments, both civil and ecclesiastical, are represented by fierce and destroying beasts, which desolate men and the places where they come. Civil history informs us of four successive dominions, which have arisen in the world from the time of Daniel – each aiming at universal empire, and destroying the one which preceded it. The ancient Babylonian which existed when Daniel prophesied, the Medo-Persian, the Grecian, and the Roman. These were represented in vision to him as related in chapter vii, by four fierce and destroying beasts. By a comparison between the character of these dominions, as they have been verified in fact, and the symbolical representation of them we find a remarkable similarity. The last of these dominions the Roman, is represented as being of long continuance, of might strength, fierce, terrible to mankind, full of oppression, persecution, and tyranny over both the souls and the bodies of men. It is the dying pangs of this fourth beast which now convulse the world. But while mankind are tormented by this struggle, following the word of prophecy we meet a most comfortable truth, which is this, that there shall never be another universal tyrannical dominion. It may be attempted, and we have reason to suppose that it is now attempted, by the infidels of France, and their emissaries in other countries, but God will blast their designs. Of this the prophecy of Daniel assures us, in many passages of the book. In the 7th chapter, he tells us he beheld until this fourth beast was slain and his body destroyed and given to the burning flame. To which he directly adds, “I saw in the night-visions, and behold, one like the son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.” Again towards the end of the chapter, speaking of the destruction of this beast he saith, “But the judgment shall fit, and they shall take away his dominion to consume and to destroy it unto the end. And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the MOST HIGH; whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom and all dominion shall serve and obey him.” Observe the prediction: The kingdom and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the MOST HIGH. – Not to infidels. – Not to men who deny the being, the providence, the religion, and the Sabbath of the Lord, by which alone, as means, a sense of moral obligation can be kept alive in the human mind. – Not to those disorganizers of society who deny all moral obligation and the duties resulting from it. The Lord may use such instruments to do his strange work of judgment in the earth, but his prophetic word hath assured us they shall never attain universal dominion. They may, for a very short season, be used as a rod in the hand of divine justice, they may be the means of correcting many people and of correcting us, if our departure from the faith and practice of the gospel should require it for the honor of the truth; but after this is done they shall suddenly come to their end and no man shall help them. This is the course of events which must happen from the nature of society, and the effect of crimes on the social state. It is also made certain by the prophetic promise of God. The evangelist John, who wrote the words of our text, is the next prophet of eminence, whom I shall notice at this time. He was one of the apostles, and the disciple whom Jesus loved. When of a great age he was banished by the emperor Domitian to the isle of Patmos, and there received and published his Apocalypse or book of Revelations. His prophecies were written more than six hundred years after the book of Daniel. At this time the three first of Daniel’s beasts, the ancient Babylonian, the Medo-Persian, and the Grecian empire formed by Alexander, had arisen in succession had destroyed each other, done their work of tormenting mankind, and their dominion was taken away, therefore the prophet John takes no notice of them. The fourth beast, the Roman Empire was then in its full strength. To this prophecy was directed, describing its character, its malice against the truth and the pure church of Christ – its diverse changes and forms of government – its decline and apparent death for a short season – and then its revival, in a more blasphemous form than is first existed – together with its miserable destruction by the avenging power of God, which is now taking place. We are, my brethren, come to what the scripture emphatically calls the last days. The last tyrannical form of government is falling to pieces, for which event there hath long been a growing preparation in the state of the nations. The pangs of misery will be great on men, and greatest on those nations and places, which most contributed to the rise and continuance of this civil and religious tyranny. Let us remember not to come near it, for its dying breath is contagious. It is the body of Daniel’s fourth beast that is dying, and infidelity with its natural consequences, war and disorganization, are the plague by which it is consuming. All wise people will withdraw their embraces, both from the dying body, and the disease by which it perisheth. To understand the Apocalypse of St. John, there must be a very considerable acquaintance with history, both civil and ecclesiastical, from his day down to the present. But few men have it, and of this few, only a part are such Christians as have the interests of Christ’s kingdom on their hearts. This must be a sealed book to the greatest part of Christians, from their not having that acquaintance with civil and ecclesiastical history, which is necessary to see the fulfillment. There is also another reason from which we must expect it to be a book hard to understand even to all. The infinite wisdom of God, designed for the comfort of his people and the consolidation of those who hold the faith of Jesus, to reveal the general state of things, his governing providence over his church, the rise of error, the conflict between the two kingdoms, and the miserable end of the delusion and of a departure from the humility and simplicity of the faith in Jesus; but not to describe the particular instruments and events by which all these things should be done. For this reason figurative and metaphorical language is introduced and we must wait until the fulfillment to see the exact intention of the Holy Spirit in all the figures which are used. To the inconsiderate and unlearned in the past history of divine providence, it is not strange, that the book of Revelations appears like a confusion of metaphors, and a description of things done by agents out of the course of nature; but in solemn language, where the agency of God and creatures, and scenes of the visible and invisible world are awfully mingled. To those who are qualified and give themselves to understand it appears far different. Although expressed in metaphors, and containing a number of visions which represent the same truths, and the same events in the history of men and of divine providence it is a systematic book. It begins with a most solemn vision of the great king in Zion, and address to the churches then in being, signified by the seven churches in Asia. This is contained in the three first chapters. From the beginning of the fourth to the end of the eighteenth chapter, we have a description of the Roman dominion from the time of John to its utter extinction and punishment. It was then heathen Rome; after this is what has been called Christian Rome; which has since degenerated into antichristian Rome or the Babylon of this celebrated Christian prophet. It has been of long continuance, has assumed various forms of government, but in all of them been tyrannical, has been brought apparently to the dust, and the revived again – has been in every form, either by heathen violence or antichristian idolatry, dangerous to the pure religion of Jesus Christ – has first enslaved the world by civil power, and then by a mixture of civil and religious, tyranny and is now dying by the agency of its own infidel children. The unprincipled offspring are now eating the flesh and drinking the blood, the riches, the strength, and all the delicacies of the impure mother. Before I proceed any further, to guard myself from an imputation of bitterness against the Roman church, I must observe that I see no reason to conclude there may not have been many sincere and good people in her communion, especially in that class of persons, who had little means of information. A great number of the late Roman clergy in France have met death in its most barbarous forms, with a constancy and a patience evincing a tender conscience and a love of God. It’s the Talleyrands in character and their associates, whom I conceive to be most properly designated by the mother of harlots, in the present period of the great apostacy from God. Farther, it is yet impossible for us accurately to determine, how near the churches which call themselves protestant and reformed, come to the true standard of evangelical faith, practice and discipline. This reformation hath taken place in various degrees in the several parts where it hath extended, and in the best there may be much hay and stubble still to consume. Though no denomination of the protestant and reformed churches, will be willing to allow this of themselves, it may belong in some respects to all of them. Neither is it seen how any church, which rests in a bare profession without the power and vital life of godliness can free itself from the charge, and many such may doubtless be found in reformed Christendom. When God hath arisen to prepare the world for the establishment of a more pure faith and practice, it becomes all to examine themselves and repent, lest they be found in the number which must be exterminated. After having made these observations, to secure myself against the imputation of a rigorous and uncharitable spirit, I must be allowed freely to say, that the Roman Empire in all its forms, the ancient and modern, the civil and ecclesiastical, hath been a tyrannical and persecuting power. It is unquestionably the same power pointed out in the gospel prophecies, by the man of sin – by the beast – the mother of harlots – the false prophet – the beast that ascended out of the bottomless pit and endeavored to destroy the witnesses of God – the modern Babylon which should fall by the signal judgments of God – that great city that ruleth over the kings of the earth. Most of these names were used by the prophet John in his successive visions, the latter explaining the former. The events, which are principal matter of St. John’s prophecy, are thrown into three great divisions of time, designated by the opening of seven seals, the sounding of seven trumpets, and the pouring out of seven vials of God’s wrath. The opening of the seventh seal contains the whole succeeding period of the trumpets and vials. The sounding of the seventh trumpet contains the whole period of the vials down to the complete destruction of that tyrannical power, which is the burden of his description. All these prophetic figures describe judgments on the enemies of God’s truth, most of which have already taken place, but my present time prohibits a particular description of the events by which they have been fulfilled. The six first seals are descriptive of heavy judgments on the heathen Roman Empire, from the time of John, down to Constantine, who declared himself a Christian, and placed Christians in all places of public office. The Christian church now enjoyed a short pause of peace from the power of its enemies, represented in the prophecy by praises in heaven and earth, and the sealing of the servants of God. But the Roman Empire in its imperial form was not long to survive. Although Constantine and a number of succeeding emperors declared themselves to be Christians, Rome was to receive that deadly wound which was healed again in the rise of a mixed tyranny, partly civil and partly ecclesiastical. This wound was given by the events prefigured by the founding of the six first trumpets. The northern pagans and savages of Europe broke in upon the empire and reduced it to the deepest humiliation, which continued from 500 to 700 of the Christian era, in which period Rome had many changes, all of them humiliating. It was this period which is mentioned in the 13th chapter of John n his Revelation, when one of the heads of the beasts, meaning the imperial form of government received a deadly wound; which wound unto death he tells us was healed again so that all the nations wondered after the beast. The healing of this deadly wound consisted in the rise of the papal hierarchy, and the political estates of Europe, which have continued without essential change to the present day. This is eminently the beast with seven heads and ten horns described by John. He tells us that the seven heads are seven kings or forms of government which Rome should have, and every thorough historian can enumerate them. That the ten horns are ten kingdoms or political states, into which the ancient empire should be divided, and we know that in every period for more than a thousand years past, it hath been nearly or exactly this number. The co-estates of the old Roman Empire, although under different sovereigns, and often at mutual enmity, have formed a body distinct from the rest of mankind, and have stretched the iron hand of their influence to the ends of the earth. They have spoken of their rights as extending to the bodies and souls of all me; and of the balance of power between themselves, as though it were an eternal rule of right for all the creatures of God. This body of the old Roman Empire hath perpetually embroiled the world, either by its arts or its power. It hath visited every coast – hath made a claim on every clime – hath concentrated the luxuries of the earth in its bosom, and there hath scarce been a contention between nations, in other quarters of the globe, to which it hath not been the author or a partisan. Its tyranny hath been over its own subjects and the people of distant regions. To a civil despotism, which naturally grew out of the barbarous foundation of feudal rights, it hath added a religious tyranny beyond all the sins that have before defiled the earth or oppressed men. It hath blasphemously changed and used the religion of the meek and lowly Jesus, to scourge oppressed nations – to dethrone lawful princes – and to indulge and pardon the worst of subjects in the greatest crimes. The civil and the religious tyrant, have walked hand in hand to deceive, to impoverish, to enslave soul and body, and then to hail the whole as done for the glory of God. These prophecies of John had a vast object for their description. Not merely one city, or nation or century of time; but the great political body of Europe, with its dependencies in other quarters of the globe, which is the old Roman Empire arisen in a new form, consisting of apostles of Jesus at the head of armies, emperors, kings, princes and multifarious catalogue of civil and ecclesiastical courts, dignities, powers and oppressions. This vast body has been called the holy Roman church and the Holy Roman Empire with its allies. This enormous mass of civil and religious oppressions began to take its form and envelope it’s true character, from 500 to 600 of the Christian era. By the year 1350 its features were completely opened. The pouring of the seven vials of God’s wrath is a prophetic description of the events, through which this oppressive power shall be brought down again to utter ruin. They probably began to run between 800 and 900 of the Christian era, and from prophetic computation, we may determine that the great work of God will be done before the conclusion of the next century. The pouring out of the fifth vial on the seat of the beast, unquestionably means the reformation, with the foundation that was then laid by the spread of knowledge, for the spreading of civil and religious liberty, in many, which are not principal powers within the limits of the old Roman empire. It is worthy of remark, that the nations which then, in a degree emerged, although they have been shaken in the present commotion, have drank less deep of the cup; and are probably reserved by the wisdom of God, to set limits to this inundation of misery, through the outraging passions of men. This is true of Britain, the Swedes, The Danes, and the northern parts of Europe and Germany. It is the sixth and seventh vials in combination that are now running. An ingenious and learned sermon, lately published by the Rev. President Dwight, hath justly explained the three impure spirits under the sixth vial, that went out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet, to mean the principles of infidelity which within a century have risen in the old Christian world. The events and the effects so precisely mark the period of prophecy, that we cannot mistake it. The causes of the present war in Europe lie in the moral world. These impure spirits, have already gathered the king or nation, to the battle of the great day of God Almighty. The battle is fighting, the blood is running, and it will run. There may be a multitude of contradicting events, but the principal features of the scene will be the same until this Babylon is fallen. 1 It is the irresistible work of God and must go on, for the mouth of the Lord himself hath spoken it. And while the work is going on, some will see and give glory to the God of heaven; but those who are most deeply involved in these events will neither see nor fear. The 18th chapter of the prophecy, which my hearers will read at their leisure, describes the wailing that is made over this wreck of nations. The kings of the earth, and the merchants of the earth, and every ship-master, and all the company in ships and the sailors, and as many as trade by sea, are represented as standing afar off and saying, Alas, Alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city, for in one hour, that is very suddenly, is thy judgment come. How corresponding are the events of the present period! The counsels and the policy of nations, far and near are deeply affected by the great battle. The merchants of the earth and those that do business on the deep waters, all become interested in the scene, and by its consequences almost through the whole world, they are reduced to wailing and distress. Who besides God could have enabled his servants to foretell these events at so vast a period from their accomplishment! In the midst of the description of this ruin, our text hath its place – And I heard another voice from heaven saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. This exhortation is full of important instruction. It must be principally meant for surrounding and distant nations; and all the preceding parts of this discourse were designed to give it a deep impression on your minds. A few individuals, of those who fear God may be so circumstanced as will enable them to leave the scene of destruction, and seek a foreign asylum; but it can be only a few. Much the greatest part of such individuals must by faith and prayer commit themselves to the divine keeping, and God can preserve them in the midst of these political thundering earthquakes. To nations situated as the American now is, the text gives most excellent advice, and points out the only possible way of preservation. Come out of her my people. 1st. Avoid the principles which are bringing her to a deserved and an awful end. It is the demoralizing principles of infidelity, which have thrown Europe into a state on which the rest of mankind look with fear and horror. There may be many honest men in the revolutionizing nations, men who would love rational liberty under steady reign of just and equitable laws. Some of these men may be deceived to think they are working out the salvation of posterity; but the reins of public direction are evidently in the hands of another class, men who have no honesty belonging to the, no love of human nature and human rights, no moral principle who dare to do every wickedness which they have opportunity to execute either by force or deception the reason they do not regard the rights of justice and humanity is because they have no fear of God. The way has been a long time preparing for this reign of impiety, by the dissemination of an infidelity among those who have assumed to be the learned, which denies either the being or the just character of God, his providence, his written law, and his instituted worship. Let these sacred truths be exploded, and men will govern themselves by their own passions and appetites. When they have cast off God, by denying him and his sacred government and laws, we must expect that the next step will be to cast away the rights of humanity and social connection. The laws of nations, of common equity, of civil rights and prescriptive duties from one man to another, and of sacred consecration, will all of them be swept away by such people, and depravity will do its worst. Prophetic description often represents the present wrath of mankind by the metaphor of a consuming fire, and there could not be a more just one. These principles destroy all before them, and though they may first enflame the palace, they will in the end consume the thatched cottage. The only dark symptom attending the present state of our nation, is that some of its people have either embraced or appear approximating towards this infidelity. If there should ever be a period that this becomes our national character, or men of this cast are able to control our national counsels, America must drink the cup of Babylon. Then she will become a limb of the beast, whose body Goth hath said shall be given to the burning flame. 2dly. The divine advice prohibits all permanent political connection with that devoted part of the world. Such political engagements and alliances, as bind us to stand of fall with them, would be the most extravagant imprudence; yea more, they would be defying the judgments of Almighty God. None but a person bereft of reason would chain himself to a burning pile. The goodness of God brought our fathers into this region, distinct from the seat of plagues. He hath blessed and made us a great people, hath given us all that freedom civil and religious, which the nature of society admits, and there is not a single burden or loss upon us, except it be those which arise from our remote relations to the center of present ruin. The voice of providence loudly cries to us, Come out of her my people – bind not yourselves to rise or sink with her, lest ye be partakers of her sins, receive of her plagues. 3dly. The exhortation teaches us not to follow the example of her deceitful politics. It is righteousness which exalteth a nation, and national sin is the ruin as well as the reproach of any people. A Christian nation should be just to its promises, and open and sincere in its professions, and keep far away from an intimate union, with all people, who consider national engagements as promises made only for the convenience of the moment. Let America be open and sincere in her measures; let her require justice from others and always be willing to do it; let her stand undaunted by the menaces or marauders and pirates, and unpolluted by the intrigues of unprincipled men, and the God of heaven will bless her. Let none be deceived by a supposition that the commotions of the old world are soon to end, and that there is on this account, less reason for our being guarded. No speedy end to these troubles can happen. Their pillars are overturned and who can set them up again? Their schemes of policy are all unhinged, and who can brace them? Their interests are become opposite, and who can unite them? Their faith and their morals are gone, and who can restore them? We know that God hath the power to do it, but following the predictions of his word, we have not much reason to expect a gracious interposition of this nature; for we are told, that under these plagues, they blasphemed God, doubtless by denying his government and his word, and repented not to give him glory. My hearers, what reason we have for national thanksgiving and praise! Let us rejoice and bless God, that we are far distant from the seat of those judgments, which he hath foretold and is now fulfilling. Let us rejoice and be glad that we have the word of God and ordinances of religion, and are not yet enslaved by a demoralizing infidelity. Let us adore his holy name for so excellent a form of civil government, for rulers who appear to be apprized of the danger on which we have been meditating, and that God hath given us the means of supporting our national and Christian independence. The bounties of Gods common providence have been abundant, and it is hoped that the affluent will testify their gratitude to him by sending portions to the poor, for the poor, my brethren you are always to have among you. While we condole with those places where disease and death have prevailed, and mourn with their mourners, we have reason to bless the Lord who hath given us health, to a degree unknown before. Let all these mercies engage us to trust in the Lord and serve him forever. To his great and holy name let us ascribe everlasting praises. Amen Endnotes The writer does not mean that every future event, in the course of those national commotions which have begun, will in the judgment of men, directly conspire to this end. God worketh by means beyond the search of human wisdom, and is often destroying when we think him to be building up. If France should again speedily obey a monarch, and Rome a consistory of pope and cardinals, this would not put a stop to the great work which is begun. There are natural and political reason inwrought with the present state of Europe and of society which show what the conclusion will be; and those retrograde events which may happen, can serve only to protract the misery of men, give every dreadful feature to the struggle and add to the completion of the final catastrophe, thus confirming the awful description of prophecy.

Changing the Narrative

Editor’s note: Below is the video and transcript of the panel discussion “Changing the Narrative,” which took place at the Freedom Center’s 2013 Restoration Weekend. The event was held November 14th-17th at The Breakers resort in Palm Beach, Florida.

Changing the Narrative from DHFC on Vimeo.
Tracy Connors: My name is Tracy Connors. I am the Director of Media for David’s new organization, Go for the Heart. And we’re here today to talk about changing the cultural narrative. So think of this as part two of the culture panel from earlier today. But we’re going to take a different tack than they did.
I spent seven years working in Hollywood production and all this stuff before joining the Right Wing Conspiracy.
(Laughter)
And I’ll tell you something. I figured — and I was telling this story earlier today — I was the one person on that side of the world that saw Andrew Breitbart stand up and say we need to take back the culture. And at that time, I was working on a reality television show, chasing around eight midgets and two retired professional wrestlers. And I said — you know, maybe I can do the reverse, and bring the culture into the Right.
And the main thing that I think needs to be done is changing the stereotypes that exist. And I wasn’t like Ben Shapiro, infiltrating and pretending to be a liberal when I worked in film. I was open about it. And it was interesting to see my friends when it would come up in conversation. Because typically on a film set, they don’t talk politics, because they assume everybody agrees.
So when it came out, people were shocked. They’re like — but you’re not mean. You’re not evil. You’re not racist. You’re not a rich, old white man. No. I’m really not.
So we need to turn that on its head and, at the same time, turn the stereotype of liberals as the caring, compassionate people that just want to build these wonderful social programs that will save everybody.
So here today, we have James O’Keefe, who I’m sure you’re all familiar with.
(Applause)
And James has been sabotaging this leftist narrative. Right? Who would’ve thought a kid with his grandmother’s chinchilla coat –
(Laughter)
– could bring down ACORN? And now, I’m sure that most of you are aware of the videos that he’s released this week. Going after another one of their sacred cows.
And then, next to James, we’ve got Gavin McInnes. If you don’t know who he is, I weep for you. He’s one of our funniest, most outspoken people that you’ve probably never heard of. He was a punk rocker in the ’80s. He started Vice magazine. He now writes for — how do we say — it’s Taki Mag?
Gavin McInnes: Taki Mag, yes.
Tracy Connors: He also has his own production and ad company called Rooster.
(Applause)
James O’Keefe: All right. Video man, can you switch the screen?
So my name is James O’Keefe. I’m the President of a group called Project Veritas. And we do investigative journalism, usually on video. And we showcase waste, fraud and abuse. We catch people in the act on tape committing the fraud.
And I have just about a minute of video I want to introduce to you, just to kind of show you what we did this week. Can we get this screen turned on?
While that’s being set up — we basically have two missions. Number one is to break news. We focus on breaking news, making the news. What most people in the media do is they comment on the news. They go on defense. They respond to what the government is doing. We don’t adhere to that. In fact, you’ll probably never even see me on the news. I don’t comment, I don’t interpret, I don’t respond. I get the government to respond to us.
(Applause)
I’m going to give you a couple examples before I show you this one. Over the last four years, Project Veritas has prompted multiple governors, attorneys general, to react to us. 2012, we did all these voter fraud videos. We went in and got offered the attorney general’s ballot to vote. That forced him into a congressional hearing. We got governor of New Jersey to respond to our Teachers Union videos. We’ve gotten the President of the United States to respond to these ACORN videos that I did with Hannah Giles four years ago. We’ve got Congress to sign a measure to defund NPR. We’ve gotten all of this attention for putting facts online, for exposing the truth.
So I’m just going to show you first this — I’m going to show you this video. This is something we released this week on the Obamacare navigators. It got 400,000 views on YouTube within 24 hours. It made the front page of every single newspaper in the state of Texas. It made the bottom and top of the hour on all the TV affiliates. If you were to buy the [earned] media, it would cost you a few million dollars.
If I were to tell you what my operating budget was in 2012, your mouth would drop. Because maybe you would think there’s a different way to go about achieving political change. Andrew Breitbart used to tell me that politics is downstream from culture. You can spend billions of dollars electing politicians who either will betray you or don’t care about you, or who will probably lose. Or you can give me 0.01 percent of that, and I can get [scouts].
So let me show you this video, and then we’ll talk about the follow.
(Video begins)
James O’Keefe: — receives millions of dollars of federal taxpayer money, telling applicants to lie about their health status.
Obamacare Navigator Assistant: You lie because your premiums will be higher.
PV Investigator: Okay.
James O’Keefe: Obamacare navigators advising applicants that they always lie.
Sabrina Hill, Obamacare Navigator: Don’t tell them that. But don’t tell them.
Obamacare Navigator Assistant: I always lie on mine.
(Video ends)
James O’Keefe: These navigators saying — I always lie on my application to the federal government. This particular office got something like $400,000 of federal taxpayer money. This office got your taxpayer money. They’re on tape committing a felony.
(Video begins)
James O’Keefe: Obamacare navigators counseling applicants how to defraud the federal government.
Mrs. Dorothy, Obamacare Navigator: You making on a cash basis business.
PV Investigator: Okay.
Mrs. Dorothy: Don’t get yourself in trouble by declaring it now.
PV Investigator: Exactly.
Lakisha Williams, Obamacare Navigator: Yeah, it didn’t happen.
PV Investigator: Okay.
(Laughter)
Lakisha Williams: Definitely with that other [unsupported cash business], just act as if that did not happen.
PV Investigator: Didn’t happen, okay.
Lakisha Williams: Never report it.
PV Investigator: Okay. Okay.
James O’Keefe: Days after President Obama thanked navigators in Dallas for signing people up on the new government-run healthcare exchange –
President Barack Obama: If people can’t get through the website, people can apply in person, if they’ve got committed folks who are out there helping people to sign up.
(Video ends)
James O’Keefe: I actually think that one of the guys in the audience in Dallas — this is last week — was one of the navigators that we caught on tape. He’s talking to this audience about — he’s thanking these navigators. And I think that’s Brian Pendleton, in the upper right-hand corner. So, this was days before we released the video.
(Video begins)
Obamacare Navigator Assistant: You lie because your premiums will be higher.
VP Investigator: Okay.
James O’Keefe: Project Veritas heads to Texas to expose Obamacare navigator fraud.
Unidentified Speaker: Want to turn Texas into a battleground state –
Unidentified Speaker: Turn Texas blue.
Unidentified Speaker: There are a few navigators here in town –
Unidentified Speaker: I haven’t [nailed] anybody [off 10].
(Video ends)
James O’Keefe: It goes on. I dressed like a cowboy and danced around. And people say — why did you do that? Why did you dress like a cowboy?
You know, Gavin and I were talking about this this week, and talking about how antiquated the Republican Party has become. We have got to try to reach beyond the political bubble using any means necessary.
I got into a debate with someone who was talking to me — maybe we just need to write policy research papers about the Obamacare fraud. Maybe that would solve the problem. But I’m competing against Miley Cyrus twerking. and Hot 97 in New York. I mean, these people don’t care about Obamacare fraud. One percent of the population watches Fox News, if that. So I’m trying, in my own way, to transcend the political bubble. And I think we have.
Because when you get covered by every single local TV affiliate in the entire state of Texas, some people are going to be paying attention that don’t care about politics.
What was the fallout? They fired the workers. They suspended three of the workers, and they fired — in fact, they had to de-license them. Because they were federal navigators. And it makes the TV news.
(Video begins)
Unidentified Speaker: Let me tell you, no on-camera interview from the folks here at the Urban League. In fact, just moments ago, they said everything is on hold here.
Also, no word today from County Judge Clay Jenkins. That’s significant because he has been the voice and face of Obamacare in Dallas County, but he would not talk to me about this episode which we all saw last night.
I did today, though, talk to the man who wore that undercover camera into two Urban League offices. He says the employees he talked to about filling out the healthcare applications were trying to steer him into fraudulent waters.
So how do you feel today?
Lawrence Jones: I feel good. You know, I feel good. The cause has been a lot, you know –
Unidentified Speaker: Meet Lawrence Jones, the man who entered two Urban League offices testing employees on the Affordable Care Act.
Lawrence, tell me about how you became the undercover uninsured.
Lawrence Jones: Well, you know, I decided [to take] Project Veritas, which is with James O’Keefe –
(Video ends)
James O’Keefe: So we have about a dozen, if not more, of these individuals, these very brave and courageous young people who decided to work with us. Lawrence is 20 years old. He has a full-time job, but he had to work with me outside of his job. And look at all these local TV stations which are dying to interview him. I mean, not only are we doing the media’s job for them, but they’re showing up to these locations knocking on the door of these clinics, saying — did the workers get fired yet? So they’re playing catch-up.
But that’s not all. What we do then is that we say okay. Like Alinsky said, we need to keep the pressure on. So we drop the second video. We dropped the last video last night. And we do an exclusive with some of these local TV stations, for example. And now, more news breaks.
This video might lead to a call for inquiry into Enroll America. A letter has been sent to the Attorney General asking for an inquiry into Enroll America’s tax status. And this is the second video.
(Applause)
By the way, we have about 20 such videos. We have videos of leadership, we have videos of Enroll America, we have videos of a group called Battleground Texas. And we’re going to roll them out one by one. Each time we do, there’ll be a reaction, and the media will be forced to cover it. And that’s pretty much what I do. We go on offense, we get the media to report. I just wanted to show you a little example of how that happens.
And I think the most important thing is to infiltrate the mainstream media. A lot of conservatives — let’s destroy the mainstream media. No, I disagree. We need to be covered by the mainstream media, fairly. How do we do that? By breaking news. By going on offense.
And that’s pretty much what I believe in. I would encourage you — I’m here — I could be — I should be in my video bay, like producing the next video. But I came here looking for financial support for Project Veritas. If you –
(Applause)
You know, I’m not a fundraiser, I don’t like fundraising. I’m an artist. But I’m here to raise money. So if you believe in this cause, if you want to help us, if you want to create another controversy, a firestorm, pull me aside. I’ll give you my card. And think about making a contribution to us. I will take the Pepsi challenge with any other organization in politics. If you can find any other group that, dollar-for-dollar, has done more with less than a million dollars, don’t give me money. But I promise, you won’t be able to do that. Thank you.
(Applause)
Sonnie Johnson: Hello.
Group: Hello.
Sonnie Johnson: My name is Sonnie Johnson, and I have a confession to make. I’m black.
(Laughter)
Okay? I do not want reparations. Just wanted to throw that out there. I love gardens.
(Laughter)
I hate Section 8 housing. They’re ghettos of poverty, death and destruction. I hate EBT cards. Because not only now have they inflicted poverty upon a whole generation of women with lower standards; they are now inflicting an entire population of young able-bodied men, which should be the real war on women. Because now you can’t find a husband with a job; instead, you find one with an EBT card. I, above everything else, understand that we cannot win this war if we do not infiltrate the culture in America.
Everyone knows that Obama’s policies are destructive. But yet, he wins. How did he win? We went out, we bashed Obamacare, we bashed the economy, we told the truth about all the issues. And while we were doing all of that, Obama was on “Leno” and “Letterman,” and “Pimp with the Limp.” And we wonder why we can’t win. Because they’ve learned what we refused to recognize — the low-information voter is still a voter. And you can’t win if you have more low-information voters voting for cultural Renaissance rather than policies that actually affect change in America.
One thing that really ticks me off more than anything is hearing that blacks have so much in common with conservatives, especially on the social issues. I’ll ask you — how far as that gotten us? I’ll let that linger for just a second. How far has that gotten us?
Group: Nowhere.
Sonnie Johnson: When you have the simplest thing of people walking around saying — it’s the economy, stupid. Understand, black people are a part of the economy. We have wallets. We have kitchen table issues. They matter to us. But over the last election — I’m in Virginia, and I spent some time with Ken and EB in Virginia. And it was abortion. Let’s talk about giving felons their rights back. Let’s talk about gay marriage.
I’m like, these people live in poverty. Why don’t you talk about how they can get a job? Their kids are going to jail. How about you talk about how you change that from happening? How about you talk about how to stop them from becoming felons, instead of talking about how to restore a felon’s rights?
(Applause)
We sit, and for some reason, we think that we can’t penetrate the black community. Okay? I am a lover of hip-hop. And I dare people all the time to tell me one hip-hop song that says — I like being broke.
(Laughter)
One hip-hop song that says — I want to ride the bus. One hip-hop song that says — I pay for my dinner with my EBT card. They don’t exist. Our songs are filled with — I can change the weather by jumping on a plane. Our songs are filled with — I got my [whips], my cars, my rides. Our songs are filled with — I live in a gated community.
Now, I wonder why I hear more free-market principles coming from hip-hop than I hear from the Republican Party.
(Applause)
And I get it back — well, hip-hop is this, that or the other. Well, guess what? It’s nationwide. It’s in college campuses all over this country. It is the culture of America at this moment, and yet we treat it like it’s a disease. So everyone who comes along and they say, it’s this, it’s that, or it’s the other; I can challenge you time after time — I do it all the time — for every Ronald Reagan quote you can give me, I can give you a Jay-Z quote that mirrors it.
Because I didn’t learn conservative principles from Ronald Reagan. I learned them from Jay-Z. I didn’t become a conservative by listening to Rush Limbaugh or Mark Levin or Sean Hannity. I became a conservative when my father told me — if you don’t have the cash to pay for something, then you don’t get it.
(Applause)
I became a conservative when my mother told me — you look for a man that wants to be the head of his household.
(Applause)
I became a conservative when my grandmother told me — one day, you’re going to have a child, and that child is going to be your responsibility. So you better wait until it’s a responsibility that you can handle. That’s how I became a conservative.
And what ticked me off more than anything is — no, I am not your prototype black conservative. And I know that. I’m a little loud. I see Ann came in — I like that. But it has to be a change in the way we target this generation that is coming up. Because with the policies that are in place now, they will be in a socialist utopia. And I find it always funny because we say — the Left wants utopia, the Left wants utopia. Well, I say conservatives think you live in utopia. You think that the way things should be are the way things are.
No. We’re nowhere near what our founders wanted for us. We’re nowhere near what our founding principles set out for us. They have moved us so far from that football field that when you say you’re a conservative, people think you want to conserve what is.
They don’t understand that we have to peel back so many layers of this liberal onion before we get to a place where we say — now, this is what we want to conserve. We want to conserve the father as the head of his household. We want to conserve the child that comes out of school not knowing Common Core curriculum but knowing how to think for themselves, that knows how to dream, that knows how to inspire.
(Applause)
But we can’t do it using the same tactics that we have seen time and time again fail. It makes people like me throw my hands up like — what part of failure don’t they understand? Aren’t they tired of losing yet?
And I’m going to leave it. But I’ll tell you one thing I really, really, really despise is the crybabies. And I don’t understand this. The Left calls me names. Okay? I’m not an Uncle Tom. But I’m not an Uncle Tom because I don’t like Uncle Tom. Uncle Tom was nice. I’m not that nice.
(Laughter)
They call me a sellout. Well, excuse me, I know how money works. So when you hold me to false liberal policies that fail, yes, I sell out. But none of these things are going to make my cry. Nor are they things that I’m going to spend my time, effort or energy fighting liberals about. Because it is a waste of time.
Some people are perfectly fit to be Democrats. They love dependency, or they’re on the other end of the spectrum, and they love looking down their noses at people who they think — you can’t do it like I do it. I got here because I’m special; you can’t. Those people are perfectly fit to be Democrats.
But I will tell you there’s an entire generation that does not want to hear from crybabies. They want to hear from people who became millionaires. And they want to know how to become a millionaire themselves. We do this by not letting the Left control the conversation. We need to go into these groups and start talking about money.
So I have just one suggestion. When they call you a racist, don’t back down. Don’t cry, don’t run, don’t do any of that. Simply say to them — I’m a colorist. So when white, black, brown, purple little aliens, whoever you are, come for my wallet, we have a problem. Because my color is green.
(Applause)
That’s how you defuse a situation.
And if I stay up here any longer, I’m going to keep going. So I’m going to go ahead and let Gavin come up now.
(Applause)
Gavin McInnes: Whew.
(Laughter)
Hi, everyone. I was a little concerned when Sonnie was talking about crybabies. And it reminded me about the common allegation that Republicans are homophobic. Because I was almost crying like a little fag –
(Laughter)
– when she was talking about fatherhood and the importance of family. I could feel my nose do that little pinch.
(Laughter)
And right when the waterworks were coming, she goes — and I’m sick of these crybabies.
(Laughter)
Oh, it’s allergies. Must be cats in here. Why do they have cats in a hotel?
(Laughter)
Oh, my God.
I think that — this is considered part two of culture speech. Because I feel like despite the Island of Misfit Toys that sits up here, I want to argue that we are conceivably the future of the Right. And I know there’s a lot of dubiosity from the elders. And I know it has a lot of do with the fact that we make up words.
(Laughter)
I don’t think you can even conceive of the kind of education we had.
I am a Canadian, which is like a canary in a coalmine of socialism. If you want to see what’s going to happen to us, just look north. And I got my degree in Montreal, where our professor was the head of the Canadian Communist Party. So it’s not like you go — hey, I find you pretty left-wing. That’s not even an insult. He’d go — yeah, I’m the leader. I am the boss of them.
So we were talking about abortion in philosophy. And this is just to explain the young person’s brain, because it’s my brain. And we were told — we were talking about abortion, and when is it okay; when is a baby a human being. And our professor told us — this is a guy we’re paying thousands of dollars to for information. Okay?
So you think of a chemist, who’s going to tell you not to mix two chemicals, because you’ll blow up. This is the kind of authority we’ve imbued to this gentleman. And he said — it’s okay — and you’re sitting there just — you know, you’re taking notes. Okay, I got a bunch of knowledge coming from the smart guy that I’m paying tons of money.
(Laughter)
Going to go tens of thousands of dollars in debt for this information, but it’s going to be very valuable. And I’m going to be rich. And what is the information? It’s okay to have an abortion up until a year after the baby is born.
(Laughter)
And I remember, as a 20-year-old, going — I’m sorry? Like, 11 months and 29 days? Yes. The reason that’s perfectly viable is a monkey is more human than an 11-month-old. Ergo, an 11-month-old is not a human being. And I was the only person in my class going –
(Laughter)
And I wasn’t even necessarily prolife back then. I was a child. I didn’t even have a stance at that point.
And, so hold on. I’m going into debt here to learn that it’s perfectly reasonable to just take a ball-peen hammer, and just walk up to a kid in a crib. And, sorry lady — whack! What have you done to my child? He’s 11 months.
(Laughter)
And don’t think I did anything wrong.
And this is the kind of brain that young people have been trained to use. And it makes for an unusual generation. And that’s why we have a President who was elected just because he’s cool. And let’s not lie — he’s cool. He’s a very cool guy.
But I’m a lot more optimistic about the younger, younger, younger generation. And I think they are so hit with information with the Internet that this bullshit is no longer working.
(Applause)
Because they can look it up. You know.
I work in advertising. And I was working with these black kids called D and Ricky. And they grew up in Statin Island with their grandmother. And they would just start making their own clothes at home, because they’d see her making them clothes. So they started learning how to use a sewing machine. They’re not gay.
(Laughter)
Be funny if I was super-mad about that — they’re not gay!
(Laughter)
Who was thinking that?
(Laughter)
Part of this story, too, is that that’s like — to them, to that generation, that’s like saying — you’re a Scorpio. You were born in June. Okay.
So they started making their own clothes. And they had, you know, multicultural friends. And they would go from Statin Island. They’d sneak into clubs late at night. And this is New York culture. It’s not a great culture, by the way. Don’t get me wrong, I live there. I’m the only sane person in the entire city.
But they would sneak around and get up to all kinds of high jinks that the kids are up to these days. And they kind of blew up. Because they went from selling clothes to their fellow students in high school to making jewelry out of LEGO. I’m not advocating it; I’m just saying that it seemed to work.
And apparently, by the way, that’s fine with copyrights. Because LEGOs are just bricks. So you’re just building a house with bricks. They don’t have any sort of copyright authority on you. You can make whatever you want out of LEGO. Who knew? They did it by trial and error.
So Kanye West loved one of their things. And he put it on his album. And then Marc Jacobs loved their stuff so much that he put their LEGO jewelry in his runway show. And now, they’re rich as shit.
(Laughter)
And they have a restaurant in Brooklyn. And they design bikes and G watch clocks. And they’re always on their phones, like the kids are. And they’re really successful, really endearing guys. Not that I can understand a third of what they say. We gotta’ get back to the hall the different stuff (inaudible), and was freakin’ out, like what?
(Laughter)
I don’t know what you’re saying. Sounds great, sounds very upbeat. I like that. But I don’t understand the actual words.
(Laughter)
So we had this guy — Sacha Jenkins was his name. And he’s my generation. So he’s a black dude, and he went to school when I went to school, when you could kill babies with hammers.
(Laughter)
And so, he’s in this like ’60s crap, right? The silent spring. Oh, the birds are all going to die. The birds will be gone tomorrow. Oh. And if black people walk outside, they’ll get eaten by German Shepherds.
(Laughter)
Really? Because I’ve been outside. It doesn’t seem that bad. Oh, it’s bad.
The drinking water you’re drinking? It’s flammable.
(Laughter)
Isn’t it flammable because there’s methane in it, and it’s been there for a hundred years? And that’s why this town is called Burning Springs? Because it’s a 200-year-old town? No. That’s from fracking. But the town’s 200 years old, and fracking is like an hour old. They got in a time machine. And the named the town a fracking name.
And that kind of liberal logic is the beauty of the information age. Because people go — that doesn’t make any sense. Oh, Burning Springs, 200 years old, they lit their tap water on fire because there’s tons of methane, which is actually why people are doing fracking there. Because there’s gas in the water, idiots.
Anyway, I’m off on 19 tangents. But Sacha — basically, black me, not brainwashed — no, sorry, brainwashed — took D and Ricky aside. And they told me this story, because we were working with them, were doing commercials with them. And they go — these crackas. By the way, what’s crackas?
(Laughter)
Are you in “Shaft?” Where did you get that accent from?
(Laughter)
Did you import your accent from the ’70s? You like foxy ladies, too? Yo, these crackas. No one has said that word in, I don’t know, 20 years? He goes — these crackas, they want you.
And they told me the story later, and it really gave me optimism. Because they go — first of all, I didn’t know that word. What is that word? Like a cracker that you eat?
(Laughter)
Oh, because it’s white. Like, they worked it out on their own. Oh, I get it. That’s not a very insulting epithet. Hey, paper.
(Laughter)
Well, looked who just walked in, it’s Mr. Whiteout.
(Laughter)
Yeah, I’m paler than other people who don’t have melanin. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Yeah.
(Laughter)
Yeah, coconut flakes. Those are also very light, which I am, I guess, compared to someone who’s darker. Yeah. Where we going with this?
So, he goes — these crackas, they want you. Meanwhile, Marc Jacobs, a white dude, is the guy who got them his amazing gig and made him rich. And Kanye West, who’s black, whatever, also made him rich. So these kids don’t understand that concept.
So when Ann is saying, you know, we need to be pure — actually, I didn’t really — I love Ann to death. In fact, bordering on, like, Scott Petersen like.
(Laughter)
Like, when I talk to her, I imagine my wife in Tupperware, in the San Francisco Bay. Ugh, I’m not proud of that.
(Laughter)
That’s no good. You’re contemplating murder. Ugh. But it pops in there.
I’m that fond of her. But in her speech, I wasn’t sure if she was saying we have to be puritans about the Right, or we can’t be picky. Because I heard both. And I know she hates libertarians. And I’m here to say — let’s just bet on the winning horse.
Whoever’s in the front — if Chris Christy is with a gay black midget with facial tattoos –
(Laughter)
– and they seem to be doing well, let’s put our eggs in that basket.
(Laughter)
(Applause)
Because we need to win. And you know, I have problems with libertarians, too. They say the only reason there’s borders is to make maps more colorful. Milton Friedman, their god — he never said that. He said that immigration is fine until it becomes a burden on the tax system. It’s a burden. It’s pretty brutal, actually, as far as burdens go. So Milton is out.
So we can embrace libertarians without having to say open borders are fine. We can embrace conservatives without saying that rap music is evil or that gay marriage is evil. How about this? I don’t even — I no longer care if it’s good or bad. I just realized that that debate seems to be done. So let’s let it go, just to win. You know, if –
(Applause)
If you’re in the ring, and they got you in the right eye, and your right eye’s sealed shut, well, we’re not using the right eye anymore. And I used to — I have a bit of a verbal diarrhea problem, so I probably should’ve ended like one minute ago, but I’m probably going to go for another two hours.
(Laughter)
Gay marriage — I never was really against it. But it seemed like a tranny who wanted to go into the women’s bathroom. And I don’t give a shit who goes to the women’s bathroom. But I just thought — uh, no. You can’t do that, you’re a dude. You can’t just put on a dress and go to the women’s bathroom. Yes, I can.
(Laughter)
And then I thought, I’m standing in front of the women’s bathroom. Because I have a feeling you don’t even believe what you believe, and you’re just trying to get into the women’s bathroom.
(Laughter)
Just to make a point. You don’t really care about sitting down. You know a urinal’s way more convenient when you have a penis. Let’s cut the shit. So you’re not coming in.
And then, it was push, push, shove, everyone was screaming. And I thought — all right, you know what? It’s four in the morning — go piss in the women’s bathroom. Fine. You win.
And I also realized they’re trying to do something traditional. They’re trying to get married. Now, they’re lying. And that’s worth noting. They don’t really want to get married. If you can have sex with anyone you want, you don’t want to get married. The only reason I’m married to my wife is I ran out of options.
(Laughter)
That’s what marriage is. I thought we were all on the same page. Like people go — would you ever cheat on your wife? And I go — it never comes up.
(Laughter)
They’re not exactly kicking down the door. That’s why we do that. But they don’t have that. So why would they bother? But okay, pretend to bother. It’s a traditional thing. And straights are not exactly killing it on the marriage scene.
And that is another reason why I think we have to have more faith in youth in Islands of Misfit Toys like us. Because these people have sort of gone through this.
I remember being a kid. My parents are still together. But I remember seeing my dad’s friends get divorced. And I saw the carnage it wreaked. And I saw them living in my dad’s basement, and that weird smell that men have when they stay on your couch when you’re a kid. And you’re like, what — did you ejaculate into the cushions? What is this weird testosterone emanating from our couch now, that I watch “Batman” on? What did you do in here? And it’s just alcohol and cigarettes, and all that man stuff.
And so, my generation has sort of gone — yeah, divorce didn’t work. And that might be one of the reasons why we’re marrying so late, is because we saw this failed experiment.
And I honestly believe that liberalism, the way the boomers have defined it, has become a failed experiment. And I think we have to have more confidence in the truth. Because it is rising to the top of the heap. And Thomas Jefferson said — there’s no truth which I fear or would want unknown to the whole world. And the information age is giving that to the youth. And they are finally realizing they’re not partisan, they’re not liberals or libertarians, or — they just know that the government ain’t all it’s cracked up to be.
And I think the way that we can ride that wave and surf it is to embrace them and say — we’re not going to get hung up on the establishment. As long as you hate the government, we’re in. And I think that’s the future of America.
Thank you.
(Applause)
Tracy Connors: All right. We have time for some questions. So there’s the mic right in the middle. If you’ve got any, bring them on. Oh, come on now.
(Laughter)
Hey, Steve, could we get the mics on the table on, please? Thank you.
Unidentified Speaker: First of all, I want to thank all three of our panel members.
(Applause)
Truly, for all of us.
Unidentified Speaker: Right? Right? I mean, come on!
Unidentified Speaker: I think you showed to me that we can have and share the same philosophy, but we can relax a little bit, folks. And we can join that cultural movement. And we have to, to survive.
I really was only familiar with James O’Keefe. My husband and I are supporters of him and love what he does.
(Applause)
We’re going to help you keep doing it, James.
James O’Keefe: Thank you.
Unidentified Speaker: And Sonnie and Gavin, you’re wonderful. Please keep up the good work.
Sonnie Johnson: Thank you.
Gavin McInnes: Thanks.
(Applause)
Unidentified Speaker: I also would like to repeat my thanks to the three of you. I thought you spoke very rationally and intelligently. And I hope for you the very, very best.
Now, the negative. And I don’t wish to be negative.
I think you guys are fighting an uphill battle, and I’m not too sure you can win. And I say this because Brigitte Gabriel said — how come we have so many of these reporters that are so liberal and leftist, et cetera? Because Saudi Arabia, with the Chastain Foundation, gave hundreds of millions of dollars to all the universities, so that they could input their people in the political party, so that they can talk to the students who are now the reporters.
So you’re fighting a major force as far as money is concerned. You’re fighting a Common Core. I’ll get to the question right now, okay.
I was in education. And I’m not too sure we’re succeeding at all. Twenty percent of my students in the eighth grade were pregnant. Okay? So now, when you have a situation like that — and I would speak to them, tell them how important it is to get good marks, they would say — we don’t have to get good marks; we’re on welfare. All right? So that’s what you’re basically fighting.
I don’t think you’re winning the battle when somebody from Fox News goes into California and says — please sign the petition. Obama wants you to sign the petition. And they say — what’s in the petition? Oh, he wants you to vote for Karl Marx. Oh, he wants you to vote for Karl Marx? I’ll sign the petition. They don’t know who Karl Marx is. And they don’t know the history of Obama and the healthcare plan. So you’re dealing with a terribly, terribly uneducated, almost illiterate group of people.
Now, my question to you is — do you really think — or maybe you’re not advertising in the right areas? Maybe you should advertize in the baseball games where these people go, or home and gardens. Maybe the money should be directed there, where you will reach these people who don’t understand, and you’re spending money where they’re already part of our [thoughtful] group.
So that’s my question — are you distributing the money in areas where you can reach people who are very low-educated?
Gavin McInnes: One of the reasons I wanted to focus on an optimistic ending is because I knew this crowd would be a little bit older than my demo. And there is an innate cynicism with that which I think is just genetic old people.
(Laughter)
And I think that — honestly. I bet 300 years ago, they’d be saying — the kids today, it’s all going to hell.
(Laughter)
And I’m glad I’m going soon, or whatever.
And there’s a lot of merit to that. And I don’t want to sound disrespectful of my elders. But I honestly think — you know, lifespan is longer than ever. We’re in the information age. Yes, the pendulum has swung away from truth right now. What I’m telling you, as someone who works with people in their early 20s — they are more dubious of this boomer-silent spring dogma that my generation has been so brainwashed. So I’m here to say, please, don’t be so cynical. Things are getting better.
And as far as distributing money goes, I keep that all to myself.
(Laughter)
Sonnie Johnson: No. I think that what is not understood is that we live in this nonsense. I mean, that’s the point — we live in it. And we know it sucks. Our generation knows that it sucks.
Our job is to show them that there’s something that’s different, that it can be done. And one of the most cynical things that I hear all the time is — it is the way it is, and it can’t be changed. And you can’t do nothing about it. It is the way it — you know, well, let me tell you, those eighth-graders that were pregnant? Guess what? Now they get to see what life is like.
Unidentified Speaker: Yeah.
Sonnie Johnson: And it sucks. And their children will grow up realizing that it sucks. So we’re having an entire generation now who has grown up in the — I grew up in the ghetto. I know it sucks. I experienced poverty; I know it sucks.
So we don’t come in now with the conversation of saying — well, you know, it’s loading the deficit if we keep on spending on social — no! You’re destroying your future if you depend on government. You’re limiting yourself if you depend on government. You will end up in death and destruction if you depend on big government.
Our message is change, because we’re not talking about what might happen, what could happen. We’re saying look where you live. And tell me this is what you want. If this isn’t what you want, then come with me. Come eat at my table, and let me show you how we do it on this side. They said we’re the party of the rich? Yeah! Come get rich with us!
(Applause)
Don’t run from it. Don’t be afraid of it. I could show you how to get rich, too. That should be our message.
James O’Keefe: If I could just add one thing — you’re talking about education in America with public schools. Charter schedules were virtually unheard of 10, 15 years ago. Now, in my neighborhood in Brooklyn, in New York, it’s getting more and more common. And they are like military schools, these charter schools. And it’s the free market, getting an education and kicking ass.
Tracy Connors: Yes.
(Applause)
Unidentified Speaker: Okay. So you four rock. I just want to say that officially, as an old person — you four rock. And there’s nothing worse than an old guy sucking up to young people.
(Laughter)
But you truly do rock.
Gavin McInnes: What are you, like — I’m 43. What are you, 44?
Unidentified Speaker: Like I said, you’re a young person.
(Laughter)
Gavin McInnes: I love you young year-ago whipper-snappers.
Unidentified Speaker: Because I’m 75.
A question to you — I live in Oxford, Mississippi. I purposely picked a college town to live in; I love living around college people. And the number-one show in the colleges across this country right now is “Shark Tank.” They watch this in house parties, they watch this together, they watch it on Hulu, and they’re streaming it.
Here’s the amazing thing about “Shark Tank.” All five of those folks — Barbara Corcoran — her husband leaves her, she has nothing, she’s a waitress; she becomes a millionaire. Mark Cuban had nothing. All these folks had nothing. Including someone from Queens, the fufu guy, who came from nothing and came from a project. And here are these people with their dreams coming to these rich people. And for the first time, I think young people are seeing that capital is good, that dreams are good, and learning how to get rich is good.
And these are shows that give me proof that young people get it. Young people are yearning for this kind of education.
Thanks for what you’re doing.
(Applause)
Gavin McInnes: Two thirds of the world’s billionaires started out with nothing. And that’s why “Shark Tank” is appealing to people. Because they all want to be rich. And what I forgot to mention up there is — what makes America unique is that we don’t like being working class.
Sonnie Johnson: No.
Gavin McInnes: And working-class people vote Republican because they don’t want taxes on their money when they’re going to be rich soon.
(Laughter)
In 20 years. And you go to Britain, and they’re like — well, I got Manchester Uni’ed, I’ve grew up here, my dad grew up here. That’s the way it goes. I don’t like anyone with an accent that’s slightly different from mine. And I’m going to grow up on this street, on this avenue, forever. Well, fuck you, that’s why we left.
(Laughter)
Actually, we kicked you out. That’s not us. We’re not sedentary, the way Europeans are. We’re pioneers.
Sonnie Johnson: Yes.
Gavin McInnes: And to get rid of this machismo and this sort of tough love is quintessentially un-American. And I’ll tell you what — if you look at human happiness, it derives from taking risks and having balls, and sticking your neck out. And to try to usurp that from American culture is to try to make us unhappy. And I’m not standing for that.
(Applause)
Sue Sharkey: Hi there. My name’s Sue. And my world is in higher education, and I serve on the Board of Regents at the University of Colorado. And I can tell you –
Unidentified Speaker: Uh-oh.
(Laughter)
Sue Sharkey: I’m not one of them.
So I see at the university, you know, just a great group of young people who are conservatives. And obviously, we all know about the liberals and so forth at the University of Colorado In Boulder. I don’t need to talk about that. But there are some solid, great, young conservative students on our campus who are out there really fighting this battle. And I applaud them and always want to acknowledge them.
My question to you is — and I want to applaud the four of you and thank you for being here. Us old folks need to hear from you. And we may not always like the way you deliver the message, or the words [you choose].
(Laughter)
But you know, that is the reality. And that message that you have you can deliver to the university campuses and be heard and understood. And so my question to you is — are you doing that?
James O’Keefe: Well, I can speak personally. I’ve been boycotted on a few campuses. The young people absolutely love what I do. When I show them the videos, their mouths drop. In fact, I went to Fordham a couple weeks ago. And the campus Democrats showed up with signs; they were going to protest me. And when they saw the “Daily Show” clips of the government workers, they dropped the signs. And — it’s a true story, you can Google it — the president of the campus Democrats said — everything I thought about you, James, is wrong.
But to get there, I had to deal with the old people who control all the money. Young people, young people young — well, young people don’t have any power, and they don’t have any money. To get to speak to them, I have to go through the universities, which always are trying to get me off their campuses.
So how do you solve that problem? By just keep doing what I’m doing.
Sue Sharkey: Call Sue Sharkey at the University of Colorado.
(Applause)
James O’Keefe: I should call you.
You know, you got to act like a — you can be a conservative, you can think like a conservative; but you really have to act like a guerilla. You have to use their –
(Applause)
Use their own rules against them. You know, negative campaigning. What I do is I just expose them. I make it about them.
Tracy Connors: Right.
James O’Keefe: So the conversation becomes about them. But how do we get in front of them? How do we infiltrate the culture? How do we make a difference? I think that they’re doing it. And we just need to do more of it. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
The amount of hopelessness from old people is unbelievable.
Tracy Connors: Yes.
James O’Keefe: Constant cynicism. You give billions of dollars to politicians who keep losing.
Tracy Connors: Yes.
James O’Keefe: Start supporting us is what my message is to you.
(Applause)
Gavin McInnes: I also think it’s worth noting that these terms are done. I think that there was Democrat and there was Republican two generations ago. Then the boomers thought that they had unveiled that. And that really just — oh, sorry, it was Protestant-Catholic first. Then it was Democrat-Republican. And now, everyone is stuck in this sort of obsession with naming your team.
But young people, they go issue by issue because of the Internet. And I think that’s the healthy way to embrace things.
I mean, I could argue I’m a liberal. I don’t like sexism. So when Islam is stoning women to death, I want to raise my hand. You know, I don’t like homophobia. So when it’s illegal in a country in Africa, I want to raise my hand. I don’t like — I appreciate the working class, so I don’t think everyone has to take Homophobia in Star Trek at UCLA and spend 60 grand getting a liberal arts degree. What’s the matter with a trade?
But in this day and age, to have those sort of liberal ideals is to be considered a conservative. Okay, fine. Conservative it is.
Sonnie Johnson: Well, I would just say — what I think is happening now is that, especially with the HBCUs, historically black colleges — they got smacked. Because Obama let their grants fail. They let their financing fail. So a huge number of the scholarships they had, or a huge number of the federal government funding that they once had at one time, has been sucked dry. And they are now realizing that maybe the black man in the Oval Office doesn’t really care about the black college universities.
So I think that we’re going to be having a real outlet and cry when they understand that these colleges are no longer going to be financed to the extent that they used to be financed.
But one thing that I would really love to speak on is the fact that Republicans don’t even understand their own history.
Tracy Connors: Right.
Sonnie Johnson: These HBCUs — who started them? They weren’t Democrats. They were Republicans. All across the South. They came in, and they said — look, we’re going to give you money, to well-known, well-established black leaders in the community. We’re going to give you money, and then we’re going to get out of your way, and let you build your colleges. And let you fill your colleges, and let you teach in your colleges.
So schools like Tuskegee down in Alabama put out a generation of teachers, of scientists — George Washington Carver — a whole generation. Matter of fact, in 1907, Tuskegee had graduated more self-made millionaires than Harvard, Yale and Princeton combined.
(Applause)
I ask a Republican about that fact, and they look at me like — huh? This is your history. Just like it’s my history. It’s not black history. It’s American history.
(Applause)
And while we’re so fond of saying what blacks don’t know, look in the mirror. Maybe it’s some things that you don’t know. And that is something that — we really need to get over that hurdle that maybe it’s just not them that are uninformed; maybe we’re a bit uninformed ourselves.
(Applause)
Unidentified Speaker: So first, I’d like to thank you all for what you do for our country.
You said in your past, you were taught liberal principles in school. And I attend a private high school where we are taught that the transgender can go into the bathroom and that abortion is moral. And myself — I don’t believe that way, and a lot of my friends don’t believe that way. But most of our school is taught that. And they don’t learn that, they don’t watch the news, they don’t read the Drudge Report. Or they just don’t follow politics at all.
So what are some ways for people to step up and fight against what we’re being taught, and think for ourselves?
Gavin McInnes: I forgot, that was the end of my speech I didn’t do.
(Laughter)
Living in New York is sort of like living in Canada, in that it’s a canary-in-a-coalmine socialist utopia, where no one is rational. And yeah, you lose money when you go.
And people I work with — they say to me — how can I say what you’re saying? I don’t want to lose my job. And what I’m noticing is that over time, it’s not that bad. I would compare it to probably a sex change.
(Laughter)
I’ve never had one, but I would wager the first month is pretty rocky.
(Laughter)
And then you get some brown nylons and a skirt that fits great.
(Laughter)
And you have your hushpuppies.
By the way, just as a slight tangent, why do these guys get sex changes and then they look like slobs?
(Laughter)
I thought you were dying to be a woman. You have jeans and New Balance on. You’re a tomboy trapped in a man’s body? Shouldn’t you have stilettos on every day if you spent all that — anyway.
(Laughter)
So I’m living proof that being a conservative in a liberal world is a little bit rocky at first. But it works. And I’ve made millions of bucks, despite all these people tweeting my clients and sabotaging my Wikipedia page and, you know, giving my wife panic attacks; threatening my family even sometimes.
But you know, you talk to Robert Spencer here about his years of Jihad Watch. And a lot of the loudest, shrillest opponents are exactly that — it’s just bluster. And if you can have the courage to plow through it, you realize — ah, it wasn’t so bad.
And that’s — I wish a lot of these liberals — the vast majority of all these left-thinking people believe what we believe. Because we just believe facts. It’s like Charles Krauthammer said — they think we’re evil; we just think they’re wrong. We want to talk about the facts; let the fact speak for themselves.
So if that is your dogma, that’s your religious belief, just keep going with it, and you’re not going to get crucified.
Sonnie Johnson: I would say — are codewords. Left love to say — he said this, that was a codeword.
Gavin McInnes: Yeah.
Sonnie Johnson: And you know, that meant something, you don’t know what it actually means. And the thing that we do is — I’ll take the issue of abortion. So as soon as you say “abortion,” it triggers in someone’s mind a woman’s right to choose. That’s their codeword. They have built in these codewords. So as soon as you say “abortion,” it’s a woman’s right to choose. No. That’s the secondary argument.
If you want to be a fan of Margaret Sanger, then I’m going to make you a fan of Margaret Sanger, okay? Margaret Sanger wanted to eliminate black people in America. Don’t tell me it was a woman’s right to choose!
(Applause)
You don’t want me here is the reason you are pushing abortion. You tell that to someone — no, it’s not. Yes, it is. You don’t get to win with a secondary argument on me. Planned Parenthood wasn’t built for a woman’s right to choose. It was so black women couldn’t reproduce.
Gavin McInnes: But what about the part where at least 50 percent of women in America are prolife? So how is it a war on women to be anti-abortion?
Sonnie Johnson: Because it’s a codeword. That’s the point.
Gavin McInnes: It’s just a given to them.
Sonnie Johnson: It gives you the right to say — you’re taking something from me. No. We want you to give something to our country. Life!
(Applause)
New people! We don’t need immigration if you have babies!
(Laughter)
You want the population to stay at a normalized, great level? Have babies! Love your babies, raise your babies. You don’t get to have a secondary argument and tell me it’s about a woman — she had a right to choose to keep her legs closed. That was her right.
(Applause)
It is not a right to choose when you put a Planned Parenthood in every other block in every black community. That is extermination. So you don’t get to have your codewords with me. You don’t get to have your secondary argument with me. If you’re going to be a fan of Margaret Sanger, then you’re going to be honest with me, and say that the mission of Margaret Sanger was black termination. Now, you argue that point with me.
(Applause)
Gavin McInnes: Can I say something? Because I flew down here, and I have verbal diarrhea?
(Laughter)
One thing we never talk about — two subjects we never talk about with abortion, is — who are these idiots ejaculating into women?
(Laughter)
You know when it’s coming. You masturbate once a day. So who are these guys who just go — oh, here we go — ohh. Oh, sorry. Do you poo your pants as well? How do you not know how to work your genitalia? We learned about that in third grade.
Anyway.
Sonnie Johnson: Like seriously (multiple speakers) –
Gavin McInnes: No one makes fun of those guys.
Sonnie Johnson: Didn’t actually (inaudible) oh, my goodness.
Gavin McInnes: One more thing.
(Laughter)
You talk to liberals about abortion, and they go — you can’t say the word “retard.” Really? When I was a kid, there was one retard in every family.
(Laughter)
And we called him retard, and he was our friend. You obliterated them from the populace.
Sonnie Johnson: Yes. You care so much.
Gavin McInnes: But you can’t be sanctimonious about a people that you have committed genocide on.
Sonnie Johnson: Yes.
Gavin McInnes: Sorry. I can say “retard,” I’m cool with them. You killed them.
Sonnie Johnson: Exactly. And that’s how you change it. Stop letting them get away with that secondary argument. It’s always a secondary argument.
Even with guns, it’s a secondary argument. Everything — no, the first gun laws were put in place so blacks couldn’t protect themselves from the KKK in the South. In other words, gun laws were put in place so that Democrats could kill blacks in the South, and we had no way to defend ourselves. That was the gun laws.
And so you have these liberals now who say — well, everything switched in the ’60s. You know, all the people switched. Well, guess what? All the policies stayed the same. Y’all kept abortion, y’all kept gun rights. Everything that the Democrats did with the intent of stopping the black population — all of them stayed on the Democratic side. So maybe the people changed, but the policies didn’t. None of the policies.
The unions were started so blacks couldn’t take white jobs. Where they at now? Gun laws were started so we couldn’t protect ourselves. Where they at now? Abortion was started so we couldn’t reproduce. Where they at now?
Every single racist policy Democrats passed before the ’60s is still on the Democratic platform. Every single one. The only difference is now, we allow them to get away with the secondary argument.
(Applause)
Unidentified Speaker: Young people want to be inspired. What I’m hearing here is a lot of sense, a lot of tactics; but very little in the way of inspiration. People — they flock to inspiration. They flock to the wrong inspiration very often, as they flock to Obama.
So what can we then get out of the conservative — I hate that word. We’re the real liberals. We’re the real, authentic liberals. We believe in freedom. We believe in the free market. We believe in the emancipatory effects of the free market. It’s not such that we think everybody should fight to become millionaires, but to let the message out there that by people becoming millionaires, the best charity of all, good jobs, are created. That’s an inspirational effect of free-market capitalism.
We too often leave aside these inspirational messages and deliberately say we’re the party of free market, freedom, liberty. But we don’t tell them what free market and liberty really amount to — that by joining this kind of movement, even those who don’t become millionaires can be taken care of by good jobs and can be taken care of by people who are privately charitable, and that we must foster the idea of private charity as part of the Republican message — and that we encourage the formation of private charity, of noblesse oblige, of taking care of people because we want to and not because we have a gun stuck to our head by some taxman and we’ll go to jail if we don’t become charitable according to the government dictate.
So we –
James O’Keefe: That doesn’t sound very interrogative. Is there a question mark at the end of this?
Unidentified Speaker: The question mark is — how do you guys, who want to infiltrate the culture, get that kind of inspirational message over, rather than simply kicking the shins of the Democrats, who have taken the high ground on this idea? And let’s get the high ground back with you guys helping us.
James O’Keefe: Well, I think I can point to some examples of how we’ve done that. I think that you can’t say — this is my perspective here; these guys might have a disagreement — but you can’t say — you can’t talk about free-market economics with these people. They don’t care about free-market economics. I don’t speak their language.
As Gavin said, I consider myself more liberal than them. These people are not liberal; they’re fascists. They’re left-wing fascists. They want to stop a dialogue, they want to stop debate. Debate is bad to them. So they’ve tried to shut me down and put us in jail, and all these lawsuits. They want to stop me from having a conversation in the first place.
The reason why I’m speaking –
Unidentified Speaker: (Inaudible — microphone inaccessible)
James O’Keefe: Well, I’m talking broadly. I can show you thousands of emails from young people who have been inspired by what we’ve done.
(Applause)
When I go to the University of California Los Angeles, I have 18-year-olds tell me — I wasn’t even involved in politics until I saw your videos. I can show you that. But I have to break through, pun intended, a massive government and media firewall to get there.
Gavin said you got to go through a world of shit to get to the destination. And that’s the message. It would be wrong of me to neglect to give that message to audiences. Oh, it must be great, going out there and changing the world. No, it’s really hard to do what we do. And I have to tell you.
But in terms of the language, I don’t use free-market capitalism. Let me give an example. When I went to Rutgers University, I was in college. And instead of talking about how wonderful Milton Friedman — and Milton Friedman graduated from Rutger’s University. 1932, I bet you didn’t know that. Went to University of Chicago afterwards. And I tried to erect a status of Milton Friedman on my campus. But they didn’t want to do it. They named the economic cell after Paul Robison, who was a Stalinist.
So instead, so instead of complaining about it and trying to petition, I went Saul Alinsky on them. I researched my professors, and how much money they made. And some of those professors at Rutgers University are making a quarter million dollars a year. And I found out what cars they drove, and some of them were driving Bentleys. And I created a newspaper. And I had a headline, I said — Lifestyles of the Rich and Marxist.
(Applause)
Gavin McInnes: And that is such a huge part of what’s being said.
James O’Keefe: And I’m going to just say one more thing, and then I want to let Gavin talk.
You know what happened with all the young people in the cafeteria? They were opening up my newspaper, pointing and laughing at their professors. That’s what you have to do. That’s the type of thing that we have to do, and nobody’s doing it.
(Applause)
Gavin McInnes: I mean, if you’re talking about hubris, this is the least hubristic — possibly another made-up word –
(Laughter)
– young person around. I mean, he doesn’t just sit and vent on his blog, or do a podcast no one listens to. He literally shuts down government organizations. And when ACORN got shut down, all the young people who saw him do it go — oh, that’s the guy who’s lying, and he was wearing a pimp coat? Why did it get shut down, then? Oh, it must’ve been an effective attack. So he gets results.
And I think young people see those results and go — oh, this isn’t just bullshit. This guy is really doing it, and he’s doing it for a thousand bucks. I might want to try this. And I think James personifies this return to true journalism, which is just — go knock on doors. Go try it. And don’t just Google and tweet what is already happening. And that’s really inspiring to young people.
(Applause)
Sonnie Johnson: And I’ll take a cultural aspect on this. The first lesson I learned about free-market principles — and I’m going back to the hip-hop on this one — Jay-Z said — your single was 99 cents; mine was four bucks. That was the first economic principle that had ever hit me — that if you have a superior product, you can charge more for that product than someone with an inferior product.
So we know free-market principles. And when I go and I talk to groups, especially with younger black kids then, I don’t go in and say — well, I want to discuss with you free-market principles. I can say to them — how many of you know a drug dealer? And they all raise their hands, because we all know one. They all start small, and build, and save. And build, and save. And build. And save, and build. The problem is what they’re doing is illegal.
Now, what if you take those same principles to say — you can start small, and build? And save, and build, and save, and build; and do it legally? The answer you always get back is — we can’t start. Because it’s so expensive. Opening for you to explain to them what a regulation is. Why they are in place. Who they’re meant to stop. Because it prevents this generation, who can maybe start a business with a thousand dollars. You can’t. Because the regulations cost you $40,000.
And now you have — we are inspired — my generation is inspired by our culture. Everyone thinks Obama was so cool. No. It was that he had Katie Perry, it was that he had Jay-Z. It was that he had the people that an entire generation looks up to like — I want to be them. That’s the inspiration.
Well, what is it about them that you want so much? And it’s the economic freedom. There is our opening. That’s our message. How do they get our message and win with it?
These are the rich people. I thought rich people were evil. This is our message. And we let it — oh, well, they don’t know anything, they’re not [this, this]; but they’re millionaires. And they got there by talent. They got there by hard work. Who says any of these people don’t work hard? Touring is hard work. Performing is hard work. They work hard for their money. And the question is — how much of it do you deserve to keep?
And I’m going to leave you with — this is the simplest way that I can — I always come back to them, and they were like — well, the rich people — they should have their money taken away. And I simply quote Jay-Z again, and say — like I’m a give a chick “half my trap, like she wrote half my raps, yeah, I’m havin’ that.” Meaning, you don’t want to give someone 50 percent of what you make, and why are you giving it to the government? Why is it okay for you to give it to the government?
These are our messages. And the Left effectively steals them from us, and it beats us over the head with them. And we say — well, we really want to talk about free-market — no. We want to talk about getting rich, even if your definition of getting rich is having a house, and taking care of your two kids, and sending them to college, and then having money to retire on. That could be your definition of rich. And that’s okay. That’s our message.
(Applause)
Tracy Connors: All right, you got two minutes, guys.
Gavin McInnes: I think we got to wrap it up. Let’s hear from Howdy Doody’s grandson.
(Laughter)
Unidentified Speaker: Thanks. Thanks, Gavin.
Very simple question — why are young people so dumb? I mean, we’ve all got young friends who live on their parents’ couches. Why are they so dumb? Why do they continue to vote for this stuff? Because we know, and we have friends whose lives aren’t very good right now. And so, why do they continue to support them?
Gavin McInnes: Two reasons. One, they did not do summer jobs, because illegal aliens did all their work. So they don’t know the value of money, and they don’t know anything about how any kind of a system works. Two, they’ve been brainwashed by these moronic liberal professors who have created this Marxist dystopia that doesn’t exist in the real world.
And a thing I forgot to bring up is they are so convinced that America’s a racist, horrible hellhole that when they get into media, they go — all right, we’re going rock some boats here. We’re going to send a guy dressed up as a Muslim with a turban on and a woman in a burqa to NASCAR. And you’re about to see some anarchy. Watch — and you might die, by the way, actor. But it’ll be worth it. You’ll be a hero, like a freedom rider.
So they go to NASCAR — ABC did this. And everyone at NASCAR goes — hey man, how’s it going?
(Laughter)
All right. Well, then another network, I forget — I think it was NBC — had this anti-Muslim guy start screaming at another actor who was playing a Muslim in a fast food place. Like — what are you doing here, Muslim? We don’t need your kind here. Some soldier in uniform goes — shut the fuck up. Okay? I’m wearing this uniform so anyone can work here and have any beliefs they want. Oh, that didn’t work out.
(Laughter)
Then, “The Daily Show” sends two actors as gays to walk through the horribly homophobic South. And everybody goes — what’s going on? You guys look like you’re in love, kissing and stuff.
(Laughter)
And they go, okay, well, up the ante. They go to a diner, and they propose to each other. What happened? Yay, you guys are in love!
(Laughter)
So, the summer jobs thing is a permanent problem. But as far as the liberal brainwashing goes, reality keeps slapping them in the face. And it’s only a matter of time before they realize that their professors have taught them a planet that does not exist.
(Applause)
Tracy Connors: All right, we got to wrap it up.
Gavin McInnes: And another thing –
(Laughter)
Gavin McInnes: — what’s with jelly beans?
Sonnie Johnson: No –
Gavin McInnes: There’s all these flavors? They don’t correspond to the color.
Sonnie Johnson: I swore to offer my services next time you need a translator. Because you don’t understand what some black person says, just give me a call, I’ll let you know. I’ll fill you in that one.
(Applause)
Unidentified Speaker: Margaret Sanger was also anti-Semitic. She began on the Lower East Side with Jewish immigrants. She practiced ethnic cleansing. Where does the UN Agenda 21 of sustainable development fit into Margaret Sanger’s philosophy?
Tracy Connors: That’s an excellent question. If you meet me outside in two minutes, I’ll get into it with you.
Gavin McInnes: She also had the libido of a horse.
(Laughter)
Very horny gal, and quite attractive.
Sonnie Johnson: Oh no, and I love to make sure people know that one of her — my favorite quotes of Margaret Sanger is — if you want to be compassionate to a child, kill it.
Tracy Connors: All right. If it’s really quick, we can do it. We got to wrap it up.
Ron Krudo: I promise it’ll be brief. It’s actually –
Gavin McInnes: Better be good.
Ron Krudo: It’ll be good, I promise. It’s tagging onto Howdy Doody, actually.
My name’s Ron Krudo. I work for a new nonprofit — that’s Future Leaders for Israel. We network pro-Israel students from all around the country to engage and educate on Israel.
And so you say that our age group — and I fall within your group, actually — that it’s very naïve and brainwashed. So we’ve been pretty successful in engaging students from both ends of the aisle and talking about Israel. But I wanted to hear some of your strategies or techniques on how to take these students that are brainwashed, and how we can educate them or talk to them, inspire them. Just like someone had said earlier.
Sonnie Johnson: I really, just really quick, because this is funny. You know, when Reverend Wright came out, and he’s like — the Jews this, and the Jews that. And I had a couple black — my family around, you know. So I asked them, I was like — how can you tell a Jew? And they all looked at me like — I don’t know. I was like, me neither.
(Laughter)
So is this really the fight that — our fight? If you can’t even look at a person with any distinguishable way to tell any — why is it something you even care about? And in the end, you have to ask yourself — why is it something that a pastor can stand up — a pastor of a church, which is absolutely hilarious — stand up and talk about God’s people?
And you have to make sure to say — you know that the Jews are Israelites, right? You know who they are and what they are, they’re significance in the Bible that you hold so dear. When your pastor gets up and says these things, does it ever cross your mind to think about what his intent really is? And if you can’t tell the difference, then what is the point?
James O’Keefe: I think that the best way to promote Israel, as far as young people go, is maybe a calendar of the women who were volunteers in the army.
(Laughter)
(Applause)
They all seem to be at least 10.
Gavin McInnes: I think Hustler already did that. Hustler already took that on, I’m sorry.
James O’Keefe: They range from 10 to 10.5.
(Laughter)
Just focus on that, and maybe not have you do the talks. Maybe have them come out with their fatigues and, you know, changing an AK. I don’t know.
Tracy Connors: All right. Thanks, everyone, for coming out and listening to us today.
(Applause)