A Must-Read for Patriots: ‘The 1776 Report’

On July 4, 1776, John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress put his signature to the Declaration of Independence, watched by fellow patriots Robert Morris, Samuel Adams, Benjamin Rush, Richard Henry Lee, Charles Carroll, John Witherspoon, John Adams and Edward Rutledge. Printed by Currier & Ives. MPI/Getty Images

This past fall, President Donald Trump founded the 1776 Commission, charging its members with the task of “cultivating a better education among Americans in the principles and history of our nation.” On Monday, Jan. 18, the commission released its “1776 Report.”

On Wednesday, Jan. 20, on his first day in office, newly elected president Joe Biden signed an executive order disbanding the commission and withdrawing the report, which had already drawn the wrath of certain progressives. Here from the Chicago Tribune is just one example of these attacks:

“In its report, which Trump hoped would be used in classrooms across the nation, the commission glorifies the country’s founders, plays down America’s role in slavery, condemns the rise of progressive politics and argues that the civil rights movement ran afoul of the ‘lofty ideals’ espoused by the Founding Fathers.

“The panel, which included no professional historians of the United States, complained of ‘false and fashionable ideologies’ that depict the country’s story as one of ‘oppression and victimhood.’ Instead, it called for renewed efforts to foster ‘a brave and honest love for our country.’”

The newspaper cites the objections of several university historians, with one of them describing the report as “a sixth or seventh grade kind of approach to history—to make the children feel good.”