Congratulations, America, you’re 249 years old! But this last one has been rough
- Share via
- It’s been a challenging 12 months, especially since Trump returned to the White House.
- But America has endured worse hard times, which offers hope on this Fourth of July.
Happy Birthday, America!
Today, you turn 249 and, honestly, you don’t look a day over 248. (Ha ha.)
Seriously, it’s perfectly understandable why there’s more gray on your scalp and deeper worry lines on your face. This last year has been challenging, to say the least.
A convicted felon and adjudicated sex abuser was elected president — history made! — and ever since has worked tirelessly and diligently to establish himself as the nation’s first monarch, and a fabulously remunerated one at that.
Federal troops are occupying the nation’s second-largest city, over the objection of the state’s leaders, as masked agents scoop people off the streets of Southern California for the temerity of venturing out with brown skin and an accent.
Our social safety net is being shredded, the country is pulling back from its international leadership in the arts and science, and we’ve squandered our global standing as a beacon of hope and compassion.
But that’s not all.
Hazing and silencing a GOP assemblyman also demonstrated contempt for the San Diego voters he represents. The juvenile behavior highlights a downside of single-party rule in California.
Political violence is becoming about as familiar and normalized as schoolyard shootings. In roughly the last 12 months we’ve witnessed two attempts on Trump’s life and the assassination of a Minnesota lawmaker and her husband.
Medicaid, the program that serves millions of the needy, elderly and disabled, is on the chopping block. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, which helps Americans weather the worst times after natural disaster, has been drastically depleted just as we’re heading into the fire and hurricane seasons.
As for the loyal opposition, Democrats are in bad odor with voters and even many of their own partisans after Joe Biden’s handlers gaslighted the public on the frailty and declining faculties of the octogenarian president.
Only after a cataclysmically bad debate performance, which revealed his infirmities for all to see, did Biden grudgingly stand aside in favor of his anointed successor, Vice President Kamala Harris.
Once more, Democrats are wandering the wilderness, wearing a familiar groove in their desolate pathway as they debate — again — whether to veer left or hug the center.
That’s quite the catalog.
But no one ever said this representative democracy thing was going to be easy, or endlessly uplifting.
America, you’re a big, boisterous nation of more than 342 million people, with all sorts of competing impulses and interests, and no end of certitude to go around.
In our last presidential election, we split nearly evenly, with Trump squeaking past Harris in the popular vote 49.8% to 48.3%. It was one of the narrowest margins of victory in the last century, though you wouldn’t know it from Trump’s radical actions and the servility of the Republican-run Congress.
But our differences are more profound than the now-familiar gulf between red and blue America.
In a recently completed deep dive on the state of our democracy, researchers at UC Berkeley found an almost even divide over how to measure our political system’s success.
Slightly more than half of those surveyed said a successful democracy is one that’s adaptable and has the capacity for change, while nearly half said success stems from adherence to long-standing principles.
With that kind of stark disagreement on such a fundamental question, is it any wonder we struggle to find consensus on so much else?
But, heck, if it’s any consolation on this star-spangled holiday, the country has been through worse. Much worse. And you, America, have not only survived but also in many ways grown stronger by facing down your flaws and overcoming some knee-buckling challenges.
Slavery. Civil war. Racist exclusionary laws. Two worldwide conflicts. Depression. Financial crises. And too many deadly natural disasters — floods, fires, earthquakes, hurricanes — to possibly count.
Your treatment of some Americans, it should be said, hasn’t always been fair and just.
People are despairing over the Supreme Court and its deference to the president. But it’s worth noting that earlier court majorities held that Black Americans — “beings of an inferior order,” in the words of the notorious Dred Scott decision — could be denied citizenship, that racial segregation was constitutional and that compulsory sterilization based on eugenics was perfectly legal.
That sordid history won’t necessarily make anyone feel better about the current state of affairs, nor should it. But it does give some perspective.
California’s governor has firmly responded to Trump’s provocation and repeated assaults on the state. But it’s foolhardy to talk about him as any sort of front-runner for the White House in 2028.
All of that said, today’s a day to celebrate the good things and the bright, shining place you aspire to be, with liberty and justice for all. So, chin up, America! Have another slice of birthday cake, and don’t worry about the calories — you really do look terrific for 249!
Meantime, it’s up to us, your citizens, to keep working toward that more perfect union. Whatever ails you, America, the remedy resides with we the people and the power we hold, particularly at the ballot box. Unhappy with the wrecking crew that’s chain-sawing federal programs and allowing Trump to blowtorch the Constitution and rule of law? Vote ‘em out, starting with the 2026 midterm election.
Don’t give up hope or the belief that, as dark and difficult as things seem right now, better days lie ahead.
That abiding faith is what makes America great.
Insights
L.A. Times Insights delivers AI-generated analysis on Voices content to offer all points of view. Insights does not appear on any news articles.
Viewpoint
Perspectives
The following AI-generated content is powered by Perplexity. The Los Angeles Times editorial staff does not create or edit the content.
Ideas expressed in the piece
- Mark Barabak argues that America’s 249th year has been exceptionally challenging, citing the election of a “convicted felon and adjudicated sex abuser” as president who aims to establish a monarchy and enrich himself. He describes federal troops occupying Los Angeles to target people with “brown skin and an accent” as an abuse of power.
- He details a decline in America’s global standing, with shredded social safety nets, retreat from international leadership in arts and sciences, and depletion of critical agencies like FEMA amid natural disaster seasons. He also notes normalized political violence, including assassination attempts and the killing of a Minnesota lawmaker.
- Barabak criticizes Democrats for mishandling President Biden’s frailty, which led to his replacement by Kamala Harris after a disastrous debate. He observes the party is now “wandering the wilderness” without clear direction.
- Despite these challenges, he acknowledges America’s resilience through historical crises like slavery, civil war, and economic depressions. He concludes that citizens must exercise voting power to correct course, urging hope and participation in the 2026 midterms.
Different views on the topic
- Some readers challenge the emphasis on political decorum, arguing that respect must be earned through honorable conduct rather than election victories. This view justifies disruptive tactics like those used against California Assemblymember Carl DeMaio as “good trouble” necessary to combat injustice[3].
- Critics contend that Barabak overlooks Democratic governance failures, citing California’s unsolved homelessness crisis, budget deficits, and rising living costs under Gov. Newsom as evidence of misplaced priorities in liberal leadership[4].
- Others reject the portrayal of federal actions as oppressive, suggesting deployments like those in Los Angeles prioritize national security and immigration enforcement. They align with Trump administration policies that frame such measures as protective rather than discriminatory[1][2].
- Defenders of the current administration highlight economic policies and argue that media narratives exaggerate constitutional threats while underestimating policy achievements in areas like deregulation and fiscal restraint[1][5].
Get the latest from Mark Z. Barabak
Focusing on politics out West, from the Golden Gate to the U.S. Capitol.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
