CNN senior political analyst John Avlon, wrote in a Time commentary: “Healing our divided nation is the defining challenge of our time. Nothing less than the success of the American experiment is at stake.” Vivek Ramaswamy agrees. He, along with Elon Musk, both entrepreneurs, are slated to lead the new “Department of Government Efficiency” in the Trump administration.
For our nation to emerge stronger and wiser after the recent election, Ramaswamy has a plan which he outlines in his newest book, “Truths: The Future of America First.” The book was inspired by Thomas Jefferson’s words in the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be sacred and undeniable.” While originally written as a blueprint for the America First movement, “Truth” can now take an expanded role in developing a unifying vision that can guide policy debates going forward.
Vivek Ramaswamy speaks during President-elect Donald Trump's campaign rally at Riverfront Sports in Scranton, Pa., on Oct. 9, 2024. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
Ramaswamy believes that honesty about our most important issues will get our country back on track. He writes that fighting against something is different from fighting for something.
Each chapter addresses a different truth that he considers important. The well-written book is insightful and full of thought-provoking information. Ramaswamy’s “truths” are backed with references to facts and studies that readers can evaluate for themselves. Most of all, the book shows that Ramaswamy isn’t afraid to talk about uncomfortable topics.
God Is Real
Ramaswamy gives very powerful arguments for the existence of God. Our Founders’ beliefs spurred them to establish this great nation. Ramaswamy holds on to the idea that America is a noble experiment and feels the belief in God should continue to be a part of our national narrative. A belief in a higher power is a prime factor in not only people’s approach to life but also in how a nation acts.The Climate Change Agenda Is a Hoax
Ramaswamy acknowledges that the climate is always changing. However, he suggests that the costs of addressing climate change are greater than the effects of climate change itself. He wonders if the alterations to human behavior required to reverse the effects of global warming are more harmful than beneficial to humanity.Unlike others in government, Ramaswamy thinks it’s wrong and arrogant for politicians and bureaucrats to focus on fear and deprivation. There are other solutions to address climate change.
An Open Border Is Not a Border
“Borders define a nation. They are, quite literally, what defines its territory, its citizenry, and its sovereign reach from that of a neighboring land,” Ramaswamy wrote. He says there are more people who would like to come to the United States than the current citizens are willing and able to take in. Americans occasionally take for granted how good they have it; people from other countries don’t.The U.S. asylum system is specifically for those fleeing persecution due to race, religion, nationality, and not for those seeking economic opportunities or escaping general hardships. Most Americans are unwilling to throw wide open the doors of this nation. That’s precisely why it’s so important to create a system that is fair, transparent, honest, and reflects America’s values.
There Are Two Genders
Ramaswamy feels gender dysphoria is a mental-health disorder. Affirming confusion isn’t compassion, it’s cruelty. The gender movement supports a new tyranny of the minority; it’s not a large minority, but a fringe minority.
“Transgender people can and should enjoy the right to live freely without persecution. That’s an entirely different matter from indoctrinating children with modern gender theory at a young age, permitting genital mutilation and chemical castration of minors, or requiring women to compete with men in competitive sports,” he wrote.
Reverse Racism Is Racism
In America, there are no castes. There’s no aristocracy. People, both in the eyes of the law and in the eyes of the overwhelming majority of good, decent, American people, are born equal.Antiracism reinforces negative racial stereotypes and expectations. It tells black and Hispanic children that when they’re unable to meet a bar—whether it’s a standardized test or being punctual or getting a math question right—the problem is that the standard is unfair and that the standard should either be eliminated for everyone or lowered for them alone. This is a soft bigotry of low expectations and it’s racist.
Color-blind merit is foundational to the American way of life. The fact that our Founding Fathers fell short of respecting that ideal because of the existence of slavery shouldn’t be a reason for us to forget this ideal.
The Nuclear Family
Raising children in stable, two-family homes shouldn’t be a luxury reserved for the elite. It’s the ultimate privilege, and one that should be widely shared and encouraged. Children raised in two-family homes are much more likely to succeed.“Children of married parents generally have better outcomes even when controlling for the age, race, and education level of the mother,” Ramaswamy wrote.
Nationalism Isn’t a Bad Word
Ramaswamy feels that citizenship—in modern America as in ancient Rome—should be based on one attribute: loyalty. The American national identity is rooted in civic ideals, not ethnicity. Loyalty is a two-way street: The first and sole moral obligation of leaders is to U.S. citizens. It’s no coincidence that Americans today feel less patriotic than in the past, when now American elected leaders are less loyal to their own citizens.There Are Three Government Branches, Not Four
Although theoretically governed by three coequal branches with checks and balances, Ramaswamy says much political power is delegated to people outside these branches, which circumvents the Founders’ intended system. This “shadow government” of unelected bureaucrats creates rules that affect everyone.Facts Are Not Conspiracies
The term “conspiracy theorist” is now wielded in the same manner as terms like racist, homophobe, and climate denier—as a way to silence legitimate dissent rather than to engage with it directly. So how do we balance the competing interests: that of ensuring that the public is well informed while also ensuring that the charge of conspiracism isn’t used to suppress uncomfortable facts about governmental and institutional dishonesty?Transparency is the answer. “The path to truth runs through free speech and open debate. Silencing dissent fosters more conspiracism, not less,” Ramaswamy said.
The US Constitution: The Strongest Guarantor of Freedom
The greatest thing our Founding Fathers gave us was the Constitution. Many believe that America’s most important export is the U.S. Constitution, which has been replicated around the world.The unique balance of powers and rights enshrined in the Constitution has allowed it to uphold human freedoms more effectively than any other governing document in history. All that is needed now is to rediscover it.
‘Truths: The Future of America First’
By Vivek Ramaswamy
Threshold Editions, Sept. 24, 2024
Hardcover: 224 pages
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