[Ads-l] "America First" and Quotations of the Year

Tue Jan 6 22:31:21 UTC 2026

I should add that, until now, the AP was very supportive and complimentary about the "notable quotations" lists.

Fred Shapiro

________________________________
From: Shapiro, Fred <fred.shapiro at yale.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, January 6, 2026 5:19 PM
To: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Subject: "America First" and Quotations of the Year

Thanks to Jon Lighter for zeroing in on this remarkable quote.  Aside from the questionable assertion that the coiner of a term gets to "decide" its meaning, we have here a staggering ignorance of American history.  The term "America First" was not only introduced a long time before our President was born, it was extremely prominent in the early-to-mid period of U.S. 20th-century history.  Stephen Goranson has found it in 1855 (see postings of Stephen and myself below).

Incidentally, if anyone is wondering why there was no "Notable Quotations of the Year" list from me, the Associated Press has decided to discontinue its dissemination of these annual lists.  I could try to find a new disseminator, but I think it best to let it die.  The concept was always a quirky and problematic one, and I have post-traumatic-quote-syndrome because compilation of the lists forces me to confront the extraordinary awfulness of our contemporary politics and culture.

Fred Shapiro

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From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of Jonathan Lighter <00001aad181a2549-dmarc-request at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Sent: Tuesday, January 6, 2026 9:01 AM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Subject: Another QOTY

Atlantic (Jan., 2026):

When I caught Donald Trump by phone this morning, the president wanted to
make one thing clear: “America First” means whatever he says it does.

“Well, considering that I’m the one that developed ‘America First,’ and
considering that the term wasn’t used until I came along, I think I’m the
one that decides that.”

JL
--
"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."

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Stephen Goranson
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    Sat Mar  2 12:40:54 UTC 2019

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              [ author ]<https://listserv.linguistlist.org/pipermail/ads-l/2019-March/author.html#154247>Lighter    L

I agree with Churchwell p. 41 that "America first" was "not suddenly...invented by an individual...."

E.g., June 18, 1855, Philadelphia Inquirer 1:3;

"As an American citizen, I prefer this rain [it was raining] or any other reign, than the reign of foreignism. (Applause.) I could have America first, last, and always. I could go for America first,...."

Stephen

________________________________
From: American Dialect Society <...> on behalf of Shapiro, Fred <...>
Sent: Friday, March 1, 2019 4:14:28 PM
To: ...
Subject: [ADS-L] Antedating of "America First"

The OED's first use citation for the phrase "America first" is dated 1915.  Sarah Churchwell _Behold, America_ (2018) discusses a number of earlier uses of "American first" beginning in 1884, at pages 39-40 of her book.

Fred Shapiro
<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.americandialect.org&d=DwIFAw&c=imBPVzF25OnBgGmVOlcsiEgHoG1i6YHLR0Sj_gZ4adc&r=uUVa-8oDL2EzfbuMuowoUadHHcJ7pjul6iFkS5Pd--8&m=dqwtm9Ztor-KXNYSRprLGcnZtUcRDUGx2qFRdY2Wq6M&s=pb_p0Z6zOklkZvi2hNcRbZP1HP7H0EOxC01bmYjJsIM&e=>

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