{"id":26526,"date":"2013-07-27T20:31:33","date_gmt":"2013-07-28T00:31:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/watchwomanonthewall\/?p=26526"},"modified":"2013-07-27T20:40:31","modified_gmt":"2013-07-28T00:40:31","slug":"did-obama-really-compare-an-infamous-communist-dictator-to-thomas-jefferson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/watchwomanonthewall\/2013\/07\/did-obama-really-compare-an-infamous-communist-dictator-to-thomas-jefferson.html","title":{"rendered":"Did Obama Really \u2018Compare\u2019 an Infamous Communist Dictator to Thomas Jefferson?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Calvin’s Question<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/strong>: After reading the article below, please leave comments…Do you agree with the author’s last paragraph or do you disagree? What is your opinion, did Obama compare Ho Chi Minh to Jefferson? <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/strong>\u25ac <\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/strong>Donna Calvin<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/strong> \u25ac Saturday, July 27, 2013 <\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n
\"Obama<\/a>
Obama compares Ho Chi Minh, the infamous communist leader of North Vietnam, Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, to Thomas Jefferson?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

North Vietnamese nationalist leader Ho Chi Minh (1892 \u2013 1969), born Nguyen That Thanh.<\/p>\n

Vietnam\u2019s infamous communist dictator Ho Chi Minh was \u201cinspired\u201d by Thomas Jefferson, the Declaration of Independence, and the United States Constitution, according to President Barack Obama.<\/h1>\n

And some think the president went too far with this claim.<\/p>\n

Obama\u2019s remarks were made shortly after he met with Vietnam\u2019s President Truong Tan Sang Thursday morning to discuss finalizing a regional trade pact.<\/p>\n

The two also touched on Vietnam\u2019s troubling track record of human rights abuses.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe discussed the challenges that all of us face when it comes to issues of human rights, and we emphasized how the United States continues to believe that all of us have to respect issues like freedom of expression, freedom of religion, freedom of assembly,\u201d the president said<\/a> after the meeting.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd we had a very candid conversation about both the progress that Vietnam is making and the challenges that remain,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

But it was something the president said in his closing remarks that has certain news sites accusing him of \u201ccomparing<\/a>\u201d the communist dictator to Thomas Jefferson.<\/p>\n

\u201cPresident Sang shared with me a copy of a letter sent by Ho Chi Minh to Harry Truman. And we discussed the fact that Ho Chi Minh was actually inspired by the U.S. Declaration of Independence and Constitution, and the words of Thomas Jefferson,\u201d President Obama said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHo Chi Minh talks about his interest in cooperation with the United States. And President Sang indicated that even if it\u2019s 67 years later, it\u2019s good that we\u2019re still making progress,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

And you know what? The president isn\u2019t entirely wrong.<\/p>\n

Ho Chi Minh, to a certain degree, was<\/em> \u201cinspired\u201d by Thomas Jefferson and the founding documents. In fact, Ho famously modeled the Vietnamese declaration of independence after the American Declaration of Independence.<\/p>\n

But let\u2019s go through this point by point.<\/p>\n

First, because words are important here, here\u2019s a quick definition of the word \u201cinspire<\/a>\u201d:<\/p>\n

in\u00b7spire (transitive verb): to influence, move, or guide by divine or supernatural.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This will be important to remember going forward.<\/p>\n

Second, we\u2019re not saying Ho\u2019s\u00a0revolution was guided by Jerffersonian philosophy. On the contrary, Ho\u2019s actions make it quite clear he\u2019s on the opposite end of limited government and self-determination.<\/p>\n

Ho was interested in totalitarianism.<\/p>\n

Still, it\u2019s not inaccurate to say that Jefferson and the founding documents helped shape Ho\u2019s approach to revolution, revolutionary rhetoric, and anti-colonialism.<\/p>\n

For instance, after Ho and his commandos took control of Hanoi in 1945, he proclaimed before an \u201cenormous crowd\u201d that \u201call men are born equal. The Creator has given us inviolable rights: life, liberty, and happiness!\u201d\u00a0PBS reminds us<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Sound familiar? There\u2019s more where that came from.<\/p>\n

\u201cHo Chi Minh \u2026 turned to the United States for inspiration,\u201d Susan Dunn writes in Sister Revolutions: French Lightning, American Light<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWould he have borrowed Jefferson\u2019s words for the joyous celebration of Vietnamese independence if he had not understood and identified with the Americans\u2019 eighteenth-century anti-colonial revolt, if he had not admired their revolutionary spirit?\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Barack<\/a>
Barack Obama shakes hands with Vietnam’s President Truong Tan Sang<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cPerhaps there was a practical side to Ho\u2019s stratagem too. He might have felt that his use of Jefferson\u2019s Declaration would impart some legitimacy to his struggle,\u201d she adds, \u201cthat it would be a signal to the Americans that he respected them, that he wanted their friendship as well as their support for his own sister revolution.\u201d<\/p>\n

Third, to say Ho drew inspiration from the founders isn\u2019t an insult to the founders. Yes, Ho was <\/em>a totalitarian. But it doesn\u2019t sully the Declaration to say Ho found it worth mimicking. It simply means Ho <\/em>either missed the point (as his murderous reign of terror would certainly indicate) or he saw the value in that type of language \u2014 or value in exploiting it.<\/p>\n

Lastly, bear in mind President Obama is trying to broker a regional trade pact with a country that has a shaky relationship with the U.S. It\u2019s a delicate situation. The president shouldn\u2019t be faulted for what appears to be an attempt to find common ground.<\/p>\n

BOTTOM LINE:<\/strong> Make no mistake about it \u2014 Ho was a terrible and brutal man. He butchered his own people. He is responsible for countless deaths.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not inaccurate to say he found some inspiration in the founders.<\/p>\n

Did President Obama \u201ccompare<\/a>\u201d Thomas Jefferson to Ho Chi Minh? Absolutely not. Did he bring up a historical fact during trade negotiations with Vietnam\u2019s president? Yes he did.<\/p>\n

\u2013<\/strong><\/p>\n

Follow Becket Adams <\/em><\/strong>(@BecketAdams<\/em><\/a><\/strong>) on Twitter<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Read more: http:\/\/www.theblaze.com\/stories\/2013\/07\/26\/did-obama-really-compare-an-infamous-communist-dictator-to-thomas-jefferson\/<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Calvin’s Question: After reading the article below, please leave comments…Do you agree with the author’s last paragraph or do you disagree? What is your opinion, did Obama compare Ho Chi Minh to Jefferson? \u25ac Donna Calvin \u25ac Saturday, July 27, 2013 North Vietnamese nationalist leader Ho Chi Minh (1892 \u2013 1969), born Nguyen That Thanh.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":403,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4426,7,5002,1361,4452,1822,1344,3100,1925,435,2574,8352,1367,5998,701,1867,3382,1355,1502,3826,4424,1498,1354,2394,1620,757,35,1108,251,244,68,450,434,3121,5144,156,1920,101,5003,5405,1410,2838,8323,3891,8379,5672,1802],"tags":[8701,8707,8699,8706,8704,8703,8705,8698,8700,8702,8708],"class_list":["post-26526","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-5th-column","category-america","category-anti-american-2","category-anti-christian-bias","category-anti-family","category-atheists","category-attacks-from-the-left-on-the-righteous","category-big-brother-is-here","category-character-assassination","category-communism","category-conspiracy-theory","category-criminalize-christianity","category-deceptions-and-lies","category-democratic-audacity","category-democrats","category-evil-plot","category-evil-vs-good","category-false-religions-that-claim-to-be-christian","category-godlessness","category-indoctrination","category-infiltrators","category-insanity","category-liberals","category-lies","category-moral-decline","category-new-world-order-globalism","category-obama","category-patriots","category-persecution","category-perversion","category-political-correctness","category-politics","category-propaganda","category-radical-change-towards-tyranny-dictatorship","category-stupid-quotes","category-take-action","category-taking-america-back","category-tea-party","category-terrfying-quotes","category-the-obama-watch","category-ungodly-new-age-religion","category-wake-up-america","category-war-on-american-values","category-war-on-christ-christians-christianity","category-war-on-the-u-s-constitution","category-will-post-you-decide","category-you-decide","tag-communist-dictator","tag-ho-butchered-his-own-people","tag-ho-chi-minh","tag-ho-was-a-terrible-and-brutal-man","tag-ho-was-a-totalitarian","tag-ho-was-interested-in-totalitarianism","tag-hos-murderous-reign-of-terror","tag-infamous-communist-dictator","tag-obama-compares-ho-chi-minh-to-thomas-jefferson","tag-obama-went-too-far","tag-vietnams-president-truong-tan-sang"],"yoast_head":"\nDid Obama Really \u2018Compare\u2019 an Infamous Communist Dictator to Thomas Jefferson? - Watchwoman on the Wall<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/watchwomanonthewall\/2013\/07\/did-obama-really-compare-an-infamous-communist-dictator-to-thomas-jefferson.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Did Obama Really \u2018Compare\u2019 an Infamous Communist Dictator to Thomas Jefferson? - Watchwoman on the Wall\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Calvin’s Question: After reading the article below, please leave comments…Do you agree with the author’s last paragraph or do you disagree? 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