possible in part by robert granieri, vanessa and henry cornell, the fairweather foundation, peter and mary kalikow, and by the following. corporate funding is provided by stephens inc. (bright music) - peggy noonan, welcome to "firing line." - thank you, margaret. it's great to be here. - i've known you for many years, and it is a great pleasure to welcome you to this program. your new book, "a certain idea of america," is a compilation of 80 columns that you have written between 2016 and now. as we sit here in the wake of a divisive election in which a twice-impeached convicted felon, a man for whom you never voted, and even called for his removal from office after january 6th, has been democratically reelected, in this moment, what is your idea? - what is my certain idea of america? - what is your certain idea of america? - the phrase "a certain idea of america" comes from the famous first sentence of charles de gaulle's war memoirs, "all of my life i've had a certain idea of france." and i remember that when i read it, read that translation, i thought, "oh my gosh, that is true of me." all of m