There is no denying it: America is the greatest country in the
world. We are blessed with unparalleled freedoms and boundless
prosperity that for generations have inspired an innovative and
industrious people. America is exceptional.
American Exceptionalism is the standard that our laws reflect
the understanding that we are afforded certain God-given rights
that can never be taken away. We know that God, not government,
bestows upon us these inalienable rights, and because of that, they
must not be compromised by the whims of man. This makes us a unique
nation, a nation that remains, as President Ronald Reagan once
said, “a model and hope to the world.”
Unfortunately, some politicians have either forgotten or chosen
to ignore the glory of our founding. In April 2009, President Obama
told a reporter in Strasbourg, France: “I believe in American
exceptionalism, just as I suspect that the Brits believe in British
exceptionalism and the Greeks believe in Greek exceptionalism.” In
saying this, the president implied that American Exceptionalism is
nothing terribly special and instead simply chalked it up to the
romanticism of patriotism.
Americans know better. We see American Exceptionalism not as an
empty cry for nationalism, but instead, the blessings of God that
keep our nation strong, independent, and free. We see the American
story as one of tenacity and triumph, not as one inherently flawed
and in need of rewriting. We recognize the times we have stumbled
but are assured that it is not due to weakness of our foundation,
but instead, the imperfection of mankind.
Most importantly, conservatives see America as exceptional
because of our shared belief in the dignity and creativity of the
individual. We know that it is innately human to work, to risk, and
to dream. We understand that these virtues, coupled with the
conditions American Exceptionalism provides, allow us to enjoy the
economic and social mobility that other countries envy. Liberals
lament that such success wasn’t guaranteed.
At its very core, progressivism rejects American Exceptionalism.
Progressives view the Constitution as a roadblock, as they seek an
unlimited federal government with more authority than the states
and more power than the people. Because they strive for a limitless
federal government, they are willing to sacrifice the rugged
individualism that has made this nation exceptional in exchange for
the collective salvation they believe a vast government provides.
And the darling of the progressive movement is, of course,
President Obama.
“Let me be clear,” President Obama: America is the
greatest nation on Earth. We are not just any other nation, and we
are certainly not analogous to our friends in Europe and elsewhere.
Our exceptionalism is forever ingrained in our founding documents
that spell out exactly the roles of the federal government in
relation to individual rights and states’ rights.
Truth is eternal, and simply ignoring the truths of the
Declaration of Independence and the Constitution won’t make them go
away. And frankly, there are enough Americans, including me, who
love it and our country far too much to allow our exceptionalism to
be bartered for further expansion of an already out-of-control
federal government.
