President Trump when talking about the caravan and his moves to defend the southern border with Mexico recently stated:

“You know they have a word, it sort of became old-fashioned, it’s called ‘nationalist.’ And I said, really? We’re not supposed to use that word. You know what I am? I’m a nationalist, OK? I’m a nationalist.”

At the commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day marking the end of World War I over the weekend French President Emmanuel Macron said this in regards to President Trump’s statement :

“Patriotism is the exact opposite of nationalism. Nationalism is a betrayal of patriotism by saying ‘our interests first, who cares about the others.’ We erase what a nation holds dearest, what gives it life, what makes it grace, and what is essential – its moral values.“

What is the alternative to nationalism and why has that word taken on such a negative connotation?

The definition of nationalism from a political standpoint is: A political, social, and economic system characterized by the promotion of the interests of a particular nation, especially with the aim of gaining and maintaining sovereignty over the homeland.

The first synonym is patriotism.

The flip side of nationalism is globalism, which Macron and other EU member leaders must need to subscribe to since they cannot defend their borders from what Brussels dictates to them.

Macron, Merkel et al have lost their sovereignty to unelected officials dictating policies of what France or Germany et al will do. Think of the refugees changing the face of Europe.

When does nationalism turn into an extreme form marked by a feeling of superiority over other countries? When the native citizens begin to feel powerless over dictates that they have no recourse from these rules affecting their lives.

Macron may be too young to remember — perhaps he should ask his wife — how American troops freed the French from occupation during the two world wars, since their patriots were unable to defend their homeland.

Now of course Brussels is quite worried that Trump’s tariffs will correct the many years that the EU took advantage of loop-sided US trade policies. So they sent their French puppet out to take a jab at the American president.

President Trump should remember you only take flak when you are over the target.