Who Is This Century's MVP?

No, It's Not Sydney Sweeney, At Least Not Yet

With a quarter of the century under our collective belt, I think it a good time to reflect on those individuals that have helped make America a saner, freer, more wholesome, more productive, more enlightened country. I am sure I will have forgotten someone or included someone I ought not have or ranked someone higher or lower than they deserve. Feel free to correct me.

As to Sydney Sweeney, Marketing 101. I just thought she’d make a good lure. In fact, no one from Hollywood made the cut. Nor did any generals or congressional leaders or religious figures. Alas, none among these ranks has the kind of cultural impact their predecessors had in centuries past. What follows are not necessarily the most saintly people of the past quarter century, but, IMHO, the most positively impactful. Counting down from 10.

10—Megyn Kelly

A pioneer in the brave new world of independent podcasting, Megyn Kelly owes her extraordinary success to a combination of looks, charm, smarts, and candor. A survivor of the legacy media, Kelly was a cultural warrior on the trans front while many of her media peers were still tiptoeing around the tulips. A foe of the faux objectivity of the mainstream media, she threw in with Donald Trump in the 2024 campaign and had an impact, especially on the soccer mom demo.

9—Ben Shapiro

He may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but when I visit with my 12-year-old granddaughter she insists we watch Ben Shapiro videos. He’s got a knack. I interviewed this LA wunderkind, then just 21, for my book, What’s the Matter with California. He laid out some of the core problems in a precocious book of his own, Brainwashed: How Universities Indoctrinate America's Youth. He’s been humping ever since. He is is editor-in-chief of DailyWire.com, host of “The Ben Shapiro Show,” and a fearless speaker on college campuses, especially on free speech issues. A strong supporter of family values, he practices what he preaches.

8—Andrew Breitbart

I have a soft spot in my heart for Andrew Breitbart. Indifferent to the posse of race baiters on his trail, he was one of only two prominent media figures to defend my thesis that terrorist Bill Ayers helped Barack Obama write Dreams From My Father. Although he died too young, and under mysterious circumstances, the seemingly fearless Breitbart brought a sense of joy and mischief to the world of conservative media as well as technological savvy. Before his death in 2012, he had launched the Breitbart empire and the careers of other innovative figures like James O’Keefe.

7—J.D. Vance

For years I resisted reading J.D. Vance’s 2016 memoir Hillbilly Elegy for the simple reason that I distrusted any book that topped the New York Times bestseller list. Upon reading it I realized that millions of liberals had been snookered, among them director Ron Howard. Much to his later regret, Howard introduced Vance to millions more fans via Howard’s 2020 movie version of the book. The reviewer from the New York Times called the book, "a compassionate, discerning sociological analysis of the white underclass that has helped drive the politics of rebellion, particularly the ascent of Donald J. Trump." A great VP candidate, Vance made the difference in getting President Trump elected.

6—Ron DeSantis

The most important election of this century that did not have Trump on the ticket took place in Florida in 2018. By the slimmest of margins Ron DeSantis beat gay crackhead Andrew Gillum (then posing as a family man) to become governor of Florida. He transformed this purple state into a model of responsible conservative government that attracted citizens from all over America and turned Florida solid red. Had Gillum won, Florida would be a different state today and America a different and lesser country.

5—Roger Ailes

In 1996 Ailes got the nod from the head of News Corp. Rupert Murdoch to create what became Fox News. Ailes was savvy enough to fill an unfilled niche and created the dominant cable news network. Although too establishment for some, Ailes eased open the Overton window rightward and launched some major careers in the process—Megyn Kelly, Tucker Carlson, Bill O’Reilly, Sean Hannity, and Greg Gutfeld among them. A bit too handsy for the #MeToo world, Ailes was eventually forced out but not before Fox News had replaced CNN in half the bars and restaurants of America.

4—Clarence Thomas

Clarence Thomas survived a tumultuous confirmation process in 1991 and unending racial taunts in the years to follow to emerge as the most dependable protector of the Constitution on the Supreme Court, likely in the history of the Court. As such, Thomas has been a inspiration to his younger peers. Without his strength and wisdom, one or two them might have gone ‘Souter’ on us.

3—Elon Musk

Despite his recent sparring with President Trump, Trump might not be president were it not for Musk. His sacrificial purchase of Twitter in October 2022 reopened the Internet to conservative dissidents and helped preserve free speech worldwide. Throw in SpaceX, Starlink, Grok, Tesla, and who knows what else, and you have the most consequential entrepreneur since Thomas Edison.

2—Rush Limbaugh

For the 33 years before his death in 2021, Rush Limbaugh defined “conservatism” in America. With very few missteps, Limbaugh identified the issues of consequence and framed them for his massive audience to understand. The Left tried to find their own Limbaugh, but they failed to see that his success hinged not on hate and bombast, as they projected, but on the opposite—humor, warmth, and an uncanny wisdom. I have a Ph.D. in American studies, but while listening, I was a just another student of this community college drop-out who informed and entertained even while keeping half of his brain tied behind his back. I miss him to this day.

1—President Donald J. Trump

“The Republican nominee for president will be that candidate who best learns that there is no future in apologizing,” I wrote in a June 10, 2015, column. Six days later Donald Trump descended the escalator at Trump Tower and, in so doing, launched the most revolutionary period in American history since the Civil War.

Trump’s refusal to back down or apologize came at a huge personal cost, but the rest of us, including his enemies, benefited from his un-Republican-like willingness to punch back when punched. The benefits have come in two primary forms: what Trump has accomplished as president and what he has exposed. In the first six months of his second term, more has been accomplished—and more exposed—than in any comparable period in American history. If he stays true to this course, the sculptors at Mt. Rushmore might want to get their chisels out.