‘Merica: Keepin’ It Klassy Since 1776

All true, but mean-spirited small-mindedness is part of our tradition, which brings us to Benjamin Franklin. In 1753, he called the German immigrants flocking to Pennsylvania “generally the most stupid sort of their own nation” and warned: “They will soon outnumber us (and we) will not, in my opinion, be able to preserve our language, and even our government will become precarious.”

From Cokie and Steve Roberts’ opinion piece The new know-nothingism.

Sound familiar?