LARRY KUDLOW: A new normal is coming back to American life
A new normal is coming back to American life and that's the subject of the riff. Maybe it's just me, but it seems like, within just a few weeks of Donald Trump's landslide victory, a new normal is coming back to American life. For one thing, the significant magnitude of his election victory has stopped all of the horror-show scenarios predicted by so many in the media, especially the liberal media. Contrary to the received wisdom, the election was decided that night. Not three weeks later, or several months later, but that night.
There were no presidential recounts. There was no violence. Mr. Trump won convincingly – and that was that. It was an orderly, normal presidential election and, despite the ritual name-calling mostly aimed at Mr. Trump – call it the "fascist Hitler factor" – Mr. Trump and Mr. Biden sat down amicably in the Oval Office to plan a peaceful transition.
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Biden looked the happiest he's looked in years. You think he voted for Trump? I do. Then, this past weekend, Mr. Trump sitting next to First Lady Jill Biden at the Notre Dame Cathedral looking very cozy, both smiling. Kind of a G7-type smooch from Mrs. Biden, who was definitely leaning into the conversation – in a church, no less. Tut tut! Think she voted for Donald Trump? I do. On "Meet the Press" this weekend, President Trump repeated his campaign message that success would end the divisions and unify the country. Take a listen:
DONALD TRUMP: "I'm not looking to go back into the past. I'm looking to make our country successful. Retribution would be through success. // And we're going to all work together, and we're going to bring it together, and you know what's going to bring it together? Success. // Unity. It's going to be a message of unity and, again, I think success brings unity."
Meanwhile, in New York City, justice was served with the acquittal of former Marine Daniel Penny, where the crazy far-left DA Alvin Bragg was once again turned back by a jury of our peers. Penny was a hero. He deserves a medal and, in breaking news, the New York Police Department working with the FBI has arrested a suspect in the hideous murder of healthcare executive Brian Thompson.
I'm thinking that New York's finest and the FBI agents in the field are very good at what they do if the politicians would just let them do it. I'm thinking that juries are very good at what they do if the politicians would just let them do it. Our Constitution and our system of common and criminal law, based on a jury system – something we inherited nearly 900 years ago from the English Magna Carta – works very well when it is depoliticized, but the system only works when we depoliticize it – without left-wing weaponization and lawfare and other forms of manipulation.
Yes, I think President Trump will return our legal system back to normal and then, if I can return back to the magnificent feat of restoring Notre Dame, I think President Trump had an eye on restoring normal religion and culture to American society – maybe even sending a message to Europe, as well.
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Liberal progressives don't like religion. They want to keep God out of our life. They are secularists, to a fault. Yes, it is a free country, but that includes religious freedom as well. When Mr. Trump went to the Al Smith Dinner in October, he was making a statement not only about helping Catholic charities, but about the importance of religion in our culture, our families, our communities and our country.
He won the Catholic vote by 20 points according to some exit polls. Whereas in 2020, Joe Biden captured the Catholic vote. Restoring the 800-year-old Notre Dame Cathedral itself was a restatement of the importance of a more religious and spiritual culture. It was the Al Smith dinner, writ large. Having the new world leader, Donald J. Trump, attend that ceremony punctuates that thought. I believe this, too, is a sign that we may be restoring normalcy. That's the riff.
This article is adapted from Larry Kudlow’s opening commentary on the Dec. 9, 2024, edition of "Kudlow."