OPINION:
As Americans gather together around barbecues and cookouts, standing beside their little ones while watching fireworks light up the night sky, it’s easy to feel a deep sense of pride for our great nation, which has defined our people for nearly 250 years. Yet this year, for too many Americans, this patriotism can feel difficult to muster.
Buying burgers and hot dogs for this year’s Independence Day is much more stressful, maddening and expensive than it was just a few years ago. While inflation rages on, our southern border remains wide open to a tidal wave of illegal immigration and deadly drugs. Global conflicts raise fears about our ability to project American strength to our enemies. The Biden administration’s failures have left the American people anxious about the future. President Biden’s recent debate performance only exacerbated those concerns, perceived as a sign of weakness by both Americans and our adversaries overseas.
The left seems to lack a positive vision of America’s future, and even within my own party, some suggest that we fail to grasp the gravity of our nation’s situation. But our nation has weathered dark times before and has always emerged stronger. We can do it again if we hold fast to the principles that have made us the greatest nation on Earth.
The American spirit is enduring and unbreakable. It lives on in those who proudly wave the flag while antisemitic, anti-American protesters chant “Death to America.” It lives on in those who rush to help communities devastated by tornadoes in Arkansas and in the countless acts of generosity and kindness displayed by ordinary Americans. And it lives on in those who serve our nation, defending our shores, because they know the American spirit is worth protecting.
Our nation was founded on ideas that changed the course of history, with our Declaration of Independence and Constitution standing as the greatest charters of freedom in human history. America is more — much more — than the current occupant of the White House. It is the citizens who cast their votes, raise families and cherish the freedoms we have. As President John F. Kennedy famously said, any nation that wishes us “well or ill can be assured the American people are always prepared to pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.”
Through my many years of public service, my opinion of the federal government has waned, but my opinion of the American people has only grown. The American people are the most generous, innovative, hardworking and patriotic people the world has ever known — from the Founding Fathers to the courageous soldiers who scaled Pointe du Hoc to the quiet patriots who teach their children to love our country and take pride in our history. The American people deserve a government as good as they are, and I firmly believe that one day, we will have it once again.
Our best days are still ahead, not because of who leads us, but because we are still a nation founded and governed by “We the People.” This Fourth of July, let us remember and celebrate that enduring spirit of independence and the principles that continue to make our nation the greatest nation ever conceived by mankind.
Happy Independence Day!
• Mike Pence is a husband, father, grandfather, Christian, conservative and Republican — in that order. He served as the 48th vice president.
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