Because I’m not a big fan of racist reality television stars leading a country of 320 million (mostly) decent people, this tweet from Hillary made me cringe:
So, too, did these words from Michelle:
Now, I’m not saying that the United States isn’t a pretty great place. Billions and billions of people on this planet would probably give their left and right arms to be a citizen of our nation. That said, when millions and millions of Americans are suffering — from lack of health care, from student debt, from gun violence, from police brutality — it’s incredibly problematic for the people charged with solving big problems — politicians, our leaders — to declare we’re already living in the “greatest country on Earth” or the “greatest country that has ever been created.”
Whether from a Democrat, a Republican or an Independent, American exceptionalism is deeply, deeply problematic — dare, I say, illiberal, insofar as it stigmatizes the most vocal critics of the nation state.
But, you argue, “Isn’t this something that all American politicians have to say?”
Well, I guess, in the past. But, as so many others have said, this year is different.
Why has Donald gotten so much support? Why has Bernie gotten so much support? Neither of them have said “the United States is — at this moment in time — the greatest nation on Earth.” Instead, they’ve both given our great nation quite a few rhetorical spankings— whether it’s Donald bemoaning our slow trains and crumbling roads or Bernie lamenting that we are the only “major country on Earth that doesn’t guarantee health care as a right.”
And, despite attempts by Very Serious Journalists to argue to the contrary, many, many Americans agree that we have a lot of problems — and believe our past leaders have failed to solve them.
I’m not going to exhaust you with evidence that, well, the United States is far, far, far from the “greatest country on Earth,” but I will ask you to consider the following.
Are we the “greatest” at taking care of our kids?
The United States has the largest economy in the world, but its children aren't reaping the benefits, according to a new report.
On Friday, the non-profit Save The Children released its annual "Child Prosperity Index" report, which evaluates 19 developed nations on a number of criteria to determine whether they are good environments for raising children. Despite being the wealthiest country, the United States ranked ninth, trailing behind Germany, Canada, and Italy, among others.
Are we the “greatest” at providing health care in an efficient and effective way?
Though the system fosters excellence and innovation in places, the messy combination of underinsurance and overinsurance has left the US with the highest healthcare costs in the developed world and some of the worst overall health outcomes.
Are we the “greatest” at providing basic physical security in our towns and cities?
Americans are 10 times more likely to be killed by guns than people in other developed countries, a new study finds.
Compared to 22 other high-income nations, the United States' gun-related murder rate is 25 times higher. And, even though the United States' suicide rate is similar to other countries, the nation's gun-related suicide rate is eight times higher than other high-income countries, researchers said.
Look, I’m not going to beat you over the head with any more of these links: you know — compared to Europe, Canada, Australia and high-income Asia — that we, relatively speaking, struggle to provide the vast majority of our citizens with excellent public goods.
Nevertheless, still, compared to many, many other countries, the United States does pretty well. We’re still a beacon of hope for millions around the world, as evidenced by the demand for green cards, even from people in super-awesome countries like Australia.
And, so, it’s fine to say “we’re a really great country.”
But I want to ask: is it really “great politics” to respond to the critical tone of Donald and Bernie with a vapid “America Is Already Great” argument?
In my humble opinion, it’s not.
So, if Hillary is going to win, and I hope she does, she’s going to need to — and her surrogates, too — acknowledge that a lot of people in the United States aren’t doing so great right now. Victims of police brutality? Those continuing to struggle with massive health care expenses? The underemployed? OK? Get my point?
This is not the election for Democrats to respond to Republicans with “rah, rah, USA! USA!”
This is the election for Democrats to respond to Republicans — Trump, included — with attractive public policy proposals capable of, when implemented, making concrete improvements to the lives of regular people, many of which are struggling right now in the so-called “greatest country on Earth.”