The New York Young Republican Club commemorates the 81st anniversary of D-Day, when the Allied Forces stormed the beaches of Normandy to free the People of Europe from tyranny. “OK,” said Eisenhower, the Supreme Commander in Europe. “Let’s go.” With those words, the most heroic military operation in modern history was underway. America’s Greatest Generation would never look back from that moment, carrying the fight from France to Berlin. Europe would soon be saved.
D-Day was the high-water mark for American patriotism. 160,000 Americans, Britons, and Canadians put their lives and families aside in pursuit of a higher cause: preserving the heritage of their countries. From the streets of New York City to prairies of the Midwest, Americans united in prayer, understanding that their civilization was worthy of the ultimate sacrifice. Their sons braved the storms of the English Channel and, in the early June 6 morning, landed on the fortified beaches of occupied France. As they fought through machine guns and minefields, Operation Overlord began.
Foremost among the men who landed on the beaches that day was Brig. Gen. Theodore Roosevelt III, an alumnus of the New York Young Republican Club. Roosevelt was both the oldest man to participate in D-Day and the highest rank to brave the landing that day. General Omar Bradley, later the first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was asked to describe the most heroic thing he ever saw in combat. Unequivocally, he replied, “Ted Roosevelt on Utah Beach.” For his “gallantry and intrepidity” that day, Roosevelt was awarded the Medal of Honor.
The heroes of D-Day remind us that our country is worthy of sacrifice and preservation. The freedoms inscribed in our Constitution are the exception to the brutalities of civilizations, not the rule. Through each generation of American history, brave patriots carried the Torch of Liberty onward through threat and hazard. From Bunker Hill to Gettysburg; from the Alamo to Iwo Jimo; and onto the shores of Normandy Beach, Americans offered themselves to a cause larger than themselves: the Great American Project.
Today, the heroes of Normandy would be horrified at the state of their country. Globalists threaten the very idea that American values are unique and worth fighting for. Foreign aliens flood into our streets with the arrogance of an occupying power. The post-war order has devolved into an orgy of interventionism and regime change. But nonetheless, brave Americans will always be there to raise the banner of freedom and pledge their honor to the Stars and Stripes. For as long as the Spirit of Normandy lives on in the Children of Liberty, America will be free.
Today, our Club honors the men who braved the beaches of Normandy, 81 years ago. By risking their mortal lives, they preserved their immortal souls.