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What does it mean to be an American when half the country no longer shares the creed?

theblaze.com · 7d · first reportShare

What does it actually mean to be an American? This question sits at the center of the right and left’s diametric opposition on matters of immigration and citizenship. But the divide wasn’t always this sharp. For decades, says BlazeTV host Nick Freitas, the idea of an “American” was essentially “creedal.” “It's the idea that ‘well, if you kind of believe in the general idea of what America is, well, then you too can be every bit as much an American as anyone else,’” he explains. But as the country becomes increasingly ideologically divided on national identity, the question of “what is an American?” demands a real answer. On this episode of “Making the Argument,” Freitas provides exactly that by outlining the three things that decide who is an American — and how that differs from a true countryman. “This is going to be controversial,” he warns. Freitas highlights JD Vance’s recent speech, in which he argued that a creedal definition (i.e. “agreeing with the principles, let's say, of the