[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 164 (Tuesday, September 22, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5750-S5751]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             AMERICAN UNITY

  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam President, last week marked another 
Constitution Day celebration. It could not have come at a better time 
because, for just one little moment, it helped us pause and contemplate 
two very important things.
  First, we took time to think about those values that our Founders 
knew. They knew that these values were essential to the establishment 
of a model republic.
  Second, we remembered the progress we have made in deciding for 
ourselves how the passage of time changes or does not change what we 
can do to make that ``more perfect Union'' even more so.
  Free speech, petition, and protest, the right to defend ourselves, 
the right to cast a vote--these are the freedoms that unite us in times 
of turmoil, whether we find ourselves in the midst of all-out war or 
just a particularly contentious election year.
  I would argue that how a nation reacts to that turmoil says more 
about its foundation than it does about who controls the news cycle on 
any given day.
  Divisive voices are hard at work in this country, and they are doing 
their very best to convince our friends, families, and neighbors that 
our foundation is weak and that our founding principles are no longer 
good enough. I find that very sad.
  They want us to believe that America as we know it is suddenly 
irredeemable, that it just can't be safe.
  You might ask yourself: Why are they saying all of this in spite of 
hundreds of years and millions of Americans proving the exact opposite 
is true?
  Here is what I think. They say it because they want us to give up. 
They want our neighbors, our families, and our friends to give up, call 
it quits; our best days are behind us. We have all heard them say this. 
They say: Throw the Constitution in the trash. Rewrite it. Start over. 
And after you throw the Constitution in the trash, then let's reimagine 
the world's greatest democracy through our very own destructive lenses 
of socialism, critical theory, and political correctness. That is what 
they say.
  As I am sure we have all seen, they have come up with some fairly 
persuasive methods to try to get their way. But I believe that, in the 
end, these efforts will all be in vain because when push comes to 
shove, we, the American people, always manage to remember where we have 
come from and to remember who we are.
  It is interesting. I think somehow we Americans always find our way 
home, back to those first principles. Indeed, I pray that continues.
  Our Founders saw what tyranny really looked like. They saw it up 
close and personal because they had to live through it. They knew 
exactly--exactly--what would happen if they put the fate of the 
Republic in the hands of men alone. So what did they do to give that 
insurance policy, if you will, that democracy and a democratic republic 
would continue and would stand? They drafted a Constitution, 
recognizing

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that our rights are a gift from God and that these rights are not a 
product of government action or they are not subject to the whims of a 
mob.
  They were also forward thinking. They gave us everything we need to 
improve upon their work.
  I think it is important to remember we have done just that. Over the 
course of more than two centuries, we have built a nation that is 
freer, more equal, and, yes, striving every day to be that ``more 
perfect Union,'' not because outside forces compel us to do so but 
because we, as Americans, chose to make it that way.
  When I see that a friend or a neighborhood has forgotten this, I like 
to remind them that two of the most emotional and powerful words in the 
English language are ``remember'' and ``imagine.''
  I tell them: Stop for just a moment. Close your eyes and remember 
what you really love about this country. Remember the special moments. 
Remember what your parents and your grandparents have told you about 
love of country. Remember the sacrifices they have made. And, now, just 
imagine: What would your children and grandkids accomplish? What would 
they accomplish if they, too, are allowed to grow up in a place where 
liberty and justice is for all, where they are allowed to dream these 
big dreams and then dream up a way to make those dreams come true? 
These are things that are valued above all else.
  Of course, as we look at our past and we remember, we look at the 
future, and we know that in finding common ground--when we find common 
ground--we see potential, and potential gives us hope. I like to say 
that hope is staking a claim on an action, on a goal that you are going 
to achieve.
  So it is my fervent hope that we will continue to stand on our 
constitutional principles and that we will defend the foundation of 
this Nation that has given so many Americans the opportunity to make 
these big dreams come true
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Missouri.

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