David Frum says we owe Volodymyr Zelenskyy a huge debt of gratitude

In case you missed it, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed a joint meeting of Congress last night. David Frum didn’t miss it. In fact, he wouldn’t have missed it for the world. He was glued to his TV in rapt attention, and it was only by some miraculous miracle that he didn’t spontaneously combust in fits of ecstasy:

“Maybe the people the Ukrainians needed us to be, maybe those were the people we could be again,” writes @davidfrum: https://t.co/aDDPBoG55K

— The Atlantic (@TheAtlantic) December 22, 2022

Zelensky came to Washington to say, "Thank you." It's we who should be thanking him. Latest in @TheAtlantic on the speech tonight. https://t.co/6c8ixYcUjH

— David Frum (@davidfrum) December 22, 2022

It’s we who should be thanking him!

And all these people couldn’t agree more with David, which is why he’s retweeted every single one of them:

“The extremists and conspiracists and populists, the authoritarians and kleptocrats and theocrats, who have all gained so much ascendancy in recent years, they do not speak for us… Sometimes, Americans forget that.” @davidfrum's latest: https://t.co/x8Ai7CYbZI

— Adrienne LaFrance (@AdrienneLaF) December 22, 2022

(There are few things David Frum hates more than authoritarianism … that isn’t left-wing authoritarianism.)

“Maybe our ideals were not so out-of-date. Maybe our institutions were not so broken. Maybe the people the Ukrainians needed us to be, maybe those were the people we could be again.” @davidfrum on Ukraine, America, and how both need one another now.https://t.co/e2vkV4xzQD

— Mark R. Yzaguirre (@markyzaguirre) December 22, 2022

he spoke for us. And the reception given to him today by the president and by Congress told the world that his words had been heard and received and understood by the great democracy-minded majority of Americans." @DavidFrum https://t.co/SKjIlLWOMY

— Charles Adler (@charlesadler) December 22, 2022

“'So much in the world depends on you.'”

"Of all the many moving words in President Volodymyr Zelensky’s speech to a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress, those eight may have been the most urgent and important."
— @davidfrum:https://t.co/frtRmSClNb

— Jeffrey Goldberg (@JeffreyGoldberg) December 22, 2022

Zelensky Recalled Us to Ourselves
He came to thank the U.S. for supporting Ukraine. It is Americans who should thank him.
By David Frum – The Atlantic https://t.co/eV3pm8eDCB

— Mia Farrow🇺🇦 (@MiaFarrow) December 22, 2022

“Embedded in [Zelensky's] words of trust was a challenge,” writes @davidfrum. “‘If we believe in you, perhaps you can again believe in yourselves?’” https://t.co/VlIUYURpRd

— Walter Stahr (@wbstahr) December 22, 2022

Excellent piece by ⁦@davidfrum⁩
Also a subscription to the @TheAtlantic⁩ would be a great Christmas present! https://t.co/autfQHuUu7

— Nessa Childers (@NChildersMEP) December 22, 2022

Oh, definitely. You wouldn’t want to miss out on quality content like this:

Zelensky came to Washington to speak for his nation. He came to Washington to ask for assistance. But above all, he came to Washington to recall Americans to themselves. He came to say, My embattled people believe in you. Embedded in his words of trust was a challenge: If we believe in you, perhaps you can again believe in yourselves?

…

And as the Ukrainians began to win, all the rest of us—all the other intended victims of Putin’s aggression—began to consider that maybe we might not be such losers ourselves. Maybe our ideals were not so out-of-date. Maybe our institutions were not so broken. Maybe the people the Ukrainians needed us to be, maybe those were the people we could be again.

…

Zelensky reminded us. He came to say thank you. It’s a little embarrassing to hear that thanks, because what Americans gave, fundamentally, was just money. Zelensky’s people have given blood, home, comfort, and security—every precious thing that human beings can sacrifice. The answer we owe Zelensky, the answer Zelensky should hear from this country, revived by his visit, his cause, and his country’s heroic fight, is: No, no, no—thank you.

Sigh.

What David Frum doesn’t seem to realize is that it’s totally possible to respect what Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian people have been through and what they are still going through and the tremendous burden of it all without coming off sounding like a lovesick schoolgirl.

Seriously, this is so weird. It actually makes us physically uncomfortable.

"It is Americans who should thank him."

Have some self-respect, ugh. https://t.co/HgbiPq5mhx

— Mark Hemingway (@Heminator) December 22, 2022

Get a grip.

— Hooch (@CompanyHooch) December 22, 2022

David probably wants to know why some members of Congress didn’t clap hard enough for Zelenskyy, too. Maybe he can write about that in his next Atlantic piece.