One week ago, many Americans watched eagerly to see how the nine justices of the Supreme Court had ruled on a number of vexing issues, from birthright citizenship to whether pornography websites can be forced to require users to prove their ages.
A similar scene plays out each year in June as the court completes its session.
It is a remarkable display of how Americans continue to value the rule of law over political personalities, regardless of the political forces in play.
Supreme court justices are not elected, of course. But they were chosen by presidents the people elected, and ratified by senators elected from each state. And those Americans who dislike the court’s rulings may begin lobbying Congress to change pertinent laws, or to double down on efforts to elect a different party majority and a president more sympathetic to their views.
The people may attend town hall meetings, meet with their representatives, sign petitions or peaceably protest.
Never-ending debates
The beauty of American democracy is that it seldom settles issues for good. Politics is a never-ending battle for the supremacy of ideas, within the framework of an inspired Constitution that guarantees basic human rights. In most cases, that never-ending hope tends to mollify intense feelings for many people, despite the agitations of party zealots.
All of this is worth contemplating as the nation celebrates another birthday, and as it begins the 250th year since the Declaration of Independence. Despite its struggles to live up to the ideals of liberty and equal opportunity for all, the history of the United States is a remarkable and steady upward trajectory that has kept it a beacon for freedom-loving people worldwide.
Yes, the nation had to endure a cruel and deadly civil war. And extreme partisanship infects much public discourse today.
But it is well-worth remembering that, before the U.S. experiment in self-government began, virtually all governments treated its people as subjects to their thrones, subject to all-powerful monarchs. In this country, the people are the source of all power.
That is an idea Americans cannot afford to forget or take lightly.
A Gallup Poll published this week found that a record low 58% of American grownups say they are proud to be American, with only 41% saying they are extremely proud. The waning pride was particularly felt among the youngest Americans,
Only 41% of those born after 1996 expressed pride in being American, compared to 58% of those born between 1980 and 1996. The figures are 75% for baby boomers and 83% for the silent generation, the oldest people in the country.
This trend is troubling. We suspect it has more to do with reactions to the current political environment (Democrats were far more likely to express a lack of pride than Republicans) than with a serious reflection of what the nation represents to much of the world.
Exceptionalism
The term “American exceptionalism” gets bandied about a lot, often being confused with flag waving or braggadocio. Perhaps the best definition was provided by the late newspaper columnist Charles Krauthammer. He wrote:
“America is the only country ever founded on an idea. The only country that is not founded on race or even common history. It’s founded on an idea and the idea is liberty. That is probably the rarest phenomena in the political history of the world; this has never happened before. And not only has it happened, but it’s worked. We are the most flourishing, the most powerful, most influential country on Earth with this system, invented by the greatest political geniuses probably in human history.”
It’s also too valuable to risk because of politics — something to ponder as the nation’s 250th year begins.
Krauthammer often wrote that the United States is special, warts and all. It is a nation filled not only with natives who were here before the white settlers, but also with people whose families originated in countries all over the world. The U.S. has a history of incorporating parts of those cultures within its own, no matter how much opposition such a thing might generate at first.
Most people won’t think twice if their Fourth of July celebrations feature the 1812 Overture, written by a Russian, Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky, and featuring cannon fire that never ceases to delight crowds.
If you happen to be the rare curmudgeon who gets irritated by all the noise and hoopla surrounding the Fourth, you need to read the letter John Adams sent to Abigail after the signing of the Declaration of Independence:
“I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding generations, as the great anniversary Festival,” he wrote about Independence Day. “It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shews, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other from this time forward forever more.”
In 1776, much work remained before the nation could be truly independent. Adams knew this.
“I am well aware of the toil and blood and treasure that it will cost us to maintain this declaration, and support and defend these states,” he wrote. “Yet through all the gloom I can see the rays of ravishing light and glory.”
Much work remains today, as it does for every generation.
The true spirit of patriotism has always been one that celebrates freedom while soberly working to preserve the system of government the Founders provided us for future generations.
We wish all a happy and joyous Fourth of July!