Op-Ed: No matter what happens in the midterms, pundits will trot out familiar narratives – and will fail to recognize the real crises unfolding at home
We’re on the brink of a third American revolution, and in that revolution, we are seeing a radical change in both the size and the scope of government.
We see a new generation of leaders emerging, determined to build a more equitable, just and effective society.
We see a reordering of the global economy and a new global order that, rather than being rooted in a military-industrial-economic establishment, is based on the principles of peace and cooperation.
We see a growing class of citizens that are ready and willing to make the difference in our public life by working together to transform the world.
It’s a world in which the rise of democracy will be the new normal, rather than the exception.
In his State of the Union address in January, President Trump called for an era of “American greatness again.” America was once a country of exceptionalism. America was exceptional because we were exceptional.
But today, our greatness is defined and measured not by how we manage our government but by how we treat those who are the most vulnerable to our economy and our society.
In this new era of exceptionalism, the first question to ask is what the United States looks like?
We need to ask our country what it means to be exceptional and what its legacy should be for future generations.
While the United States will never be perfect, we believe our country is exceptional because we are driven more by what we believe in than what we have.
There’s no doubt that our government and our society need and deserve improvement, as they have often been imperfect. But in this moment, this is the new normal.
We do not celebrate our country’s shortcomings. We celebrate our country’s achievements.
We are building a more humane and fairer society. We are rededicating ourselves to the principles of justice and dignity that were the foundation for our country’s greatness.
We are building the life we want to live.
But we can’t do this without first asking ourselves what it means to be great.
It
