Is David Pakman right about America trending more to the left?
In a recent interview with long-time conservative radio host Dennis Prager, David Pakman, the popular, left-wing podcaster and TV host, asked Prager about the state of the nation. From Pakman’s perspective, we are in the midst of “a 30, 40-year trend of moving to the left culturally.” This prompted him to ask Prager, “Do you feel as though this is a lost cause and the country has clearly gone in a different direction?” Was there anything, Pakman wondered, that might buck this trend and turn the tide?
Prager, never one to pull punches, answered plainly, “There's no question we're moving to the left culturally. The first thing people have to do is recognize reality.
“You may or may not be happy with it,” Prager observed, but you cannot deny reality.
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Yes, in many ways, America has not just moved left in recent decades. It has lurched and even jumped left, much of this the outgrowth of the counterculture revolution of the 1960s.
Just think of the subtitle to Christopher Rufo’s new book America’s Cultural Revolution: How the Radical Left Conquered Everything. “Everything” is quite a big word.
Or think of the Democratic Party of Bill Clinton compared to the Democratic Party today.
Or of the makeup of university faculty from the 1960s until our day.
Or of the dramatic shift in attitudes concerning LGBT issues and people from just 1990 until today.
There’s no question we have moved far to the left in many ways.
As Pakman pointed out, based on representative polling data, “Record support for same sex marriage today. Record number of people saying I'm moving away from religion. Highest in the Roe v. Wade era of the country says abortion should be legal in most cases. Sixty percent says we haven't gone far enough on making transpeople feel welcome.”
So, is the case closed? Not so fast. There are actually numerous signs pointing in the opposite direction. A new, conservative-based, counterculture revolution is on the rise.
Let’s consider some other polling and/or anecdotal data. (The question is not whether you believe what is happening is good or bad. The question is whether these things are really happening.)
A June 2023 article states that, “Although the LGBT community can count on a lot of public and political sympathy, support for this minority group seems to be declining.”
Based on polling data from 30 mostly Western countries, the article noted that, “People are generally more positive about gay couples raising children, but similar patterns can be discerned there too ... Over the past two years, support for this practice received significantly less support in countries such as the United States, the Netherlands and Sweden.”
On December 29, 2022, NBC News ran this ominous headline: “2021 was supposed to be the 'worst year' for LGBTQ rights — then came 2022. Even with the enactment of a historic same-sex marriage bill, advocates describe a harrowing year for LGBTQ Americans.”
And on June 6, 2023, CNN announced, “Human Rights Campaign declares a national state of emergency for LGBTQ+ people.”
Certainly, for David Pakman and many other Americans, this is terrible news, yet another sign of homophobic, transphobic bigotry.
I am simply pointing out that there is a serious pushback against LGBTQ+ activism (or, “rights,” depending on one’s perspective), with much of it a reaction to radical trans activism.
Just think of the Budweiser and Target boycotts. Even non-Christian voices like Joe Rogan were saying, “This is a bridge too far.”
It’s the same with the celebration of drag and drag queens. Many Americans who said yes to “love is love” and who affirmed same-sex couples said, “We didn’t sign up for this.”
That’s why it was no surprise to read in June of last year that, “Americans overwhelmingly oppose transgender athletes in female sports, poll shows. Two-thirds of Americans say transgender girls 'have a competitive advantage' over biological girls in youth sports.”
As for the issue of abortion, while opinion polls certainly matter, and while voting trends in the 2022 elections would point to a rise in pro-choice sentiments, Ramesh Ponnuru, in a June 2023 op-ed for the Washington Post, said this: “The torrent of stories about setbacks for pro-lifers has made it oddly easy to lose sight of the most basic point about abortion policy over the last year: The pro-life side is making huge gains. The Supreme Court no longer claims that our most fundamental law requires that the killing of unborn children be treated as a nonevent. In 23 states, legislators have banned abortion after six weeks or earlier; two more have banned it after 12 weeks. (Some of these bans are tied up in court.) In those places that have enacted new laws protecting abortion access, on the other hand, abortion had not been restricted before; they have for the most part ratified the status quo.”
Is this not major news?
Another factor, largely the result of parents becoming more aware of school curricula during COVID, is that there is a pushback against the leftwing indoctrination of children in the public school system.
Already in June 2021, Yahoo News reported that, “Parents across the country are fighting back against pervasive leftist ideology in schools — with such frequency that opposition to certain aspects of public education is becoming a national movement.”
More broadly, Forbes noted on June 8, 2023, “As hot-button social issues like abortion and transgender rights dominate politics, more Americans — and the highest percentage since 2012 — are identifying as socially conservative, according to a Gallup poll released Thursday, marking a shift from a time when Americans were about as likely to say they were socially liberal as conservative.”
Again, there is no denying that America has, in large measure, been leaning further to the left in recent decades. But, as I wrote back in June, “The Cultural Tide Is Continuing to Turn, Just as Predicted.” And with more and more reports of fresh spiritual outpouring across the nation, from college campuses to local churches, the prospect of major spiritual renewal and revival is becoming more real by the day.
Let us seize the moment and turn the tide.
Dr. Michael Brown(www.askdrbrown.org) is the host of the nationally syndicated Line of Fire radio program. His latest book isWhy So Many Christians Have Left the Faith. Connect with him on Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube.
