President Ronald Reagan knew how to deliver a speech. On Jan. 19, 1989, he gave a particularly beautiful one. It was at the presentation ceremony for the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
The president described a letter he received. “A man wrote me and said: ‘You can go to live in France, but you cannot become a Frenchman. You can go to live in Germany or Turkey or Japan, but you cannot become a German, a Turk, or a Japanese. But anyone, from any corner of the Earth, can come to live in America and become an American.’”
That, Reagan said, “is one of the most important sources of America’s greatness. We lead the world because, unique among nations, we draw our people — our strength — from every country and every corner of the world. And by doing so we continuously renew and enrich our nation.”
Last week, Gov. Asa Hutchinson found himself defending to legislators his decision to allow about 50 refugees to resettle in northwest Arkansas. “Each of you are leaders in your community; you’ve got a choice to make,” Hutchinson said. “You can create fear, or you can help resolve fear. I challenge you to help resolve fear, have the facts and to talk about those.”
The decision was his to make because President Donald Trump in September signed an order allowing states to refuse refugees.
The governor noted that the Trump administration has slashed the number of refugees eligible to come to this country, improved security screenings and was focusing on refugees who have helped the U.S. military overseas.
In addressing lawmakers, Hutchinson sounded like the thoughtful Republicans we remember with nostalgia. Perhaps he understands what Reagan expressed in that speech: “If we ever closed the door to new Americans, our leadership in the world would soon be lost.”
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