Tomorrow (July 4) America will celebrate its 250th birthday. But what should have been an occasion of celebration has become a moment of introspection. The whole world sees America as a successful country, but Americans themselves are in a depressed state of mind. According to a Gallup survey, in the year 2000, about 55% of Americans believed that America’s founders would be happy to see the country’s success. But today only 19% think so. In other words, America has diminished the dignity of its Founders. At first glance, this could be blamed on Trump’s corrupt administration. It is also true that Trump’s rise, fall and re-emergence in the last decade has created turmoil in American politics. But the problems are more complex than that, hidden in the divisions within American society. On one side is the nativist and right-wing movement of ‘MAGA’, which is becoming divided between ‘Trump-devotees’ and ‘America-First’ supporters. Trump’s followers blindly support him, while America-First supporters have nationalist ideologies and disagree on many of Trump’s policies. Tucker Carlson and Marjorie Taylor Greene, among the influential faces of the ‘America-First’ movement, were once strong supporters of the MAGA movement, but have now left the Republican Party. Now they are calling Trump’s policies and the war against Iran a betrayal of their own movement. Podcasters like Theo Vaughn, Tim Dillon and Candace Owens, who helped Trump make a comeback, have also now turned anti-Trump. On the other hand, the Democratic Party is also under pressure from socialist forces. The latest indication of this is the victory in the Democratic primary of three candidates supported by New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani. The decision to freeze the rent of some apartments in New York will also benefit 25% of the residents there. Last year a Gallup survey revealed that Democrats prefer socialism more than capitalism. This difference of ideology is highest among people under the age of 30. Declining support for Israel among Americans is another sign of domestic turmoil. Israel previously enjoyed strong support from both the Democratic and Republican parties, due to the support of powerful lobbies. But the situation has changed now. 60% of Americans view Israel negatively, including nearly 80% of Democrats. AI is another area where division is visible. To control this, a strong pro-labor coalition is being formed among the Democrats and Republicans. On one side are those who are using AI to increase productivity, on the other side are those whose jobs are in danger due to automation. Protests against AI data centers and power plants are also growing. People object that this will increase electricity bills and noise. The real cause of all these divisions is an economy that has lost trust among ordinary Americans. For decades, America had sold the dream of progress to the world, and to its own people. The same dream is now surrounded by serious questions. Wage growth lagged behind asset price increases. That means people who have property and shares became richer. While people dependent on salaries were left behind. The middle class, long the cornerstone of American democracy, is shrinking. An entire generation is burdened with student debt. Health care remains prohibitively expensive for millions of people. The rising prices of houses in big cities have made the dream of owning a house a distant dream. What we are seeing today is a chaotic process that Trump has given birth to. He promoted populist forces that are now undermining the established structures of both the Democratic and Republican parties. Today, 250 year old America is neither headed towards a decisive decline, nor is it completely healthy. He is going through a period of turmoil and the world is watching him with concern. America, 250 years old, is neither headed towards a decisive decline nor is it completely healthy. Its society is divided and its politics is confused. He is going through a period of turmoil and the world is watching him with concern. (These are the author’s own views)
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Manoj Joshi’s column: America is in a dilemma before its 250th anniversary.
