Amazing.
As anyone familiar with Washington D.C. would know — and fyi I was a longtime D.C. resident in my various jobs on Capitol Hill, in the Reagan White House, and at the Bush 41-era, Jack Kemp-led Department of Housing and Urban Development — standing proudly in front of Union Station, Washington’s train center, is a marble statue of one Christopher Columbus.
Alas, things had not been going well for ole Chris over the years. The man revered as the “discoverer” of America and for whom, every October, a federal holiday is named, was (and still is) at the center of the Left’s contempt for America’s founding. Not to mention the contempt for the famous explorer himself, who is credited in history as the founder of the land.
The Columbus statue had been repeatedly desecrated, smeared with painted graffiti, and looked a mess. As seen here.
Enter America’s builder president — Donald Trump. Incensed at the condition of the Columbus statue, the president has made a point of having the statue of Columbus restored to its original marble magnificence. As seen here.
In fact, there has now been added to the Capitol’s statuary inventory another Columbus statue, as recently headlined here in The New York Post: “White House installs Christopher Columbus statue made from remains of toppled sculpture.”
The story reported:
A new statue of Christopher Columbus went up on the White House grounds Sunday that was built using pieces from a monument to the Italian explorer that protesters destroyed six years ago.
The 13-foot, one-ton replica of a Columbus statue toppled in Baltimore in 2020 — then dumped into the city’s inner harbor — was commissioned by the Conference of Presidents of Major Italian American Organizations and is part of the White House’s celebration of America’s 250th anniversary.
The statue has been placed outside the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.
For those unfamiliar with D.C. geography, the Eisenhower Executive Office Building sits next to the White House and is considered part of the White House complex — as I can attest, having worked in the Eisenhower EOB during the Reagan presidency.
Well. Well done, Mr. President.
This would be a moment to dwell on the importance of America remembering its history, whether Columbus from 1492 or a building or statue somewhere in Washington, D.C., or, for that matter, a history reminder anywhere in the country.
Indeed, the now-named “Eisenhower” Executive Office Building was named well after the building was constructed in the late 19th century. It was originally known as the “State, War, and Navy” building, as it was built to house those three key departments of the federal government. It is now so named because President Eisenhower, as a young military officer, was assigned to the EOB. Over the years, other prominent Americans had offices in the EOB. Americans with names like Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and a raft of vice presidents made the building their home office.
Much fuss has been raised about the addition of President Trump’s name to the Kennedy Center. The Kennedy Center itself was nameless as it was being built to become a cultural center for the nation’s capital. That changed in the wave of emotion that followed the young president’s assassination in November of 1963.
It has taken Trump, a decidedly historically aware president, to have the vision to save Columbus and, yes, to the seething foaming of his enemies, have his own name added to the Kennedy Center. The Center has received much attention from Trump to help its finances. (RELATED: The Trump-Kennedy Center Naming Kerfuffle, Part 2)
Make no mistake.
It is not only important, but it is also critical for Americans to have reminders of their own history, whether with a Columbus statue in front of Union Station or that now famous Lincoln Memorial at the other end of Washington. The Lincoln statue that sits opposite the famous tower of the Washington Monument, itself a historical marker honoring America’s famous Founding Father, that even had its own construction problems as it was raised over decades.
All of which is to say, Trump rescuing Columbus is symbolic of a president stepping forward to preserve American history. A history that begins with Columbus (and before that, the arrival of what are known today as Native Americans) and reaches across centuries to the founding of the American Republic and onward with the parade of presidents who have led America and made it what it is today.
It is a reminder that history — be it good, bad, or indifferent — rolls on. And for the sake of future generations, historical markers, whether a Columbus statue, various buildings, or paintings, are needed to remind the future of the past.
And to remind us of the American leaders who have led their country to where it is today.
READ MORE from Jeffrey Lord:
The Trump-Kennedy Center Naming Kerfuffle, Part 2
Image licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International.
