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Culture War Roundup for the week of February 23, 2026

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Yes, that's right. Trump is half german, half scots. He has 1/2 parents born in America, 0/4 in American grandparents, and 0/8 American Great-grandparents. His grandfather even went back to Germany to get a German wife, not unlike the Chinese Gary Locke's father. If you have to go back to your homeland for a wife, your homeland isn't America.

If you don't have a single American grandparent, I don't see how you can consider yourself an American, and I do not mean a scrap of paper or a passport. That applies to my own family, too, but my foreign forefathers had the good sense to marry in (although it was exclusively foreign women marrying American men).

Just because I'm curious about your worldview, how would you rate my "American-ness"? I have a Scots-Irish Great-Great-Great-Great-Great Grandpa (and their son) who immigrated to the US in the 1820s or so. But on my mom's side, I have a ton of French Canadian blood that mostly immigrated to the US about 100 years ago.

Bonus points, my Great-Great-Great-Great-Great aunt was one of Joseph Smith's wives, but somehow I managed to not have any polygamists in my direct lineage despite them all being early converts.

To answer that question, I have to ask you some questions in return.

Where were you born? (One)

Where were your parents born? (Two)

Where were your grandparents born? (Four)

Where were your great-grandparents born? (Eight)

That's 15 people, and if you can't even get to five then you're not American. If you're under half, I'm skeptical. If you can get to 2/3rds, then that's probably enough.

I mostly believe that Teddy Roosevelt was right, and that since so many people consider themselves to be hyphenated Americans, I don't consider them American at all.

I was born in the USA, my parents were, and so were all my grandparents (my grandpa grew up speaking both English and French, but he was born in Massachusetts). For great-grandparents I'm not sure, I know at least one was born in Quebec and at least two were born in the USA. So at least 9? FWIW, I also largely agree with Teddy.