Francesca Hong says she regrets CNN interview about Thanksgiving

It took a statewide campaign in Wisconsin for Francesca Hong to realize that telling Americans she wants to “cancel Thanksgiving” might not be a winning message. In a new local TV interview, the former democratic socialist candidate says she regrets her CNN appearance. But listen closely. She regrets the interview, not the idea. There is no apology for the sentiment, no admission that Thanksgiving is worth keeping. Just the standard political retraction: sorry it cost her votes.

That should tell you everything about how she and her allies actually think. Thanksgiving is the one holiday that doesn't ask anything of you except to show up and be thankful. No gifts, no costumes, no religious observance. Just a table, some food, and family. To propose canceling that isn't a policy position. It's a window into a worldview that sees American traditions as problems to be solved rather than blessings to be passed down. They only regret getting caught, not the sneer behind it.

The left loves to talk about “community” and “togetherness” until they run into something that actually produces both. Hong wanted to replace Thanksgiving with some kind of "harvest meal" that would presumably be ideologically clean. That's the tell. The contempt for ordinary American life is always bubbling under the surface, and every now and then a candidate forgets the script and says it out loud. Her regret is purely strategic. It's the same regret a child has when they're caught, not when they're corrected.

We don't expect Hong to win anything this year. But this little episode is worth remembering the next time a progressive says they respect American values. They don't. They just respect the phrase, right up until they think no one is listening. Thanksgiving will survive Francesca Hong. The question is whether she'll ever figure out why.