“Americans are as divided as ever”, “Political polarization is at an all time high”, “Is the United States heading towards a new Civil War?”, and a million other terrifying, alarmist headlines. On social media, on the television, or in the papers, wherever you turn the messaging is clear - the United States is a nation on the brink, with everyday Americans on the frontline of a cultural cold war that seems ready to turn hot.

The situation sounds depressingly bleak, almost beyond repair. Or is it?

When you take a moment to unplug yourself from the matrix and interact with your fellow citizens in the world, face-to-face, and far away from the screens that have come to dominate our lives, you quickly come to a shocking realization: our national divide is a manufactured reality. Simply put, it’s not real. As it turns out, most Americans agree on the basics. Kitchen table issues like inflation and cost of living, finding more honest and well paying jobs, a secure border, and making sure families are safe from crime and able to live in peace. The gap between what the airwaves say Americans are thinking versus what they actually believe is so wide it would make the Grand Canyon look like a crack in your pavement.

This reality was carefully crafted by a formidable coalition of authoritarian forces hellbent on reshaping America’s national identity to a new, illiberal ideal. Comprised of unelected bureaucrats, multinational corporations, and the omnipresent media machine, this coalition is the cabal we have come to know as the Deep State. To further their goal of consolidating control over the United States, the Deep State has made it a point to keep Americans divided, knowing that by keeping Americans focused on petty differences, they’ll keep the citizenry from realizing the potential of their collective voice.

To quote one of the great heroes of the Revolutionary War, Patrick Henry: “United we stand, divided we fall.”

Fortunately, not everyone has taken this gradual erosion of our freedoms lying down. For years, everyday Americans have started to voice their concerns, taking to the streets, online, and on the airwaves to question the endless march towards dystopia. This movement of Patriots continued to grow, until in 2016, its energy manifested in the election of Donald Trump. Finally, after decades of our nation sleepwalking towards cultural disaster, we, the Patriots, had found our champion. We could finally take the fight directly to the Deep State.

But this fight has not been without its challenges. The Deep State and its allies have obstructed progress at every turn. Through manipulative media, state policy, censorship, and outright violence, they have harried anyone who dares speak out against their orthodoxy. And no one has spoken out more or as loudly as President Trump, and as a result, no one has felt the wrath of the Deep State as much as him either. And yet, despite the endless barrage of lawsuits, government obstruction, harassment, and the like, Teflon Don has carried on. When none of their strategies worked, they had to get creative, twice! And even then, President Trump was just bloodied, and definitely not beaten.

With this message in mind, and inspired by President Trump’s courage under fire, I was moved to create this latest work, which I have titled “United We Stand”. The scene pays homage to the iconic image of Trump’s defiant fist pump, but with great Presidents from history in place of the secret service agents. The Presidents included were chosen because like President Trump, each undertook the office of the Presidency during times of great uncertainty and peril, and through sheer force of will helped guide the United States to revitalized glory. I like to think all pictured were present that day in spirit, pooling their immortal energies to safeguard their present day representative. If you’ve made it this far, you know the message we are trying to convey is complex, and time is short. My hope is that through art, we can encapsulate the critical message of unity in a single frame. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words!

As always, I hope you enjoy my work. Please feel free to share it with others who you think may appreciate its message. Never underestimate your impact as an individual in our great Democracy. Get the word out, be safe, and most importantly, VOTE! Thank you for your time and God Bless America!