I think you miss the point. Most Americans believe we live in the greatest country in the world. That "greatness" has come from pursuing the ideals outlined in the Declaration of Independence and codifying them in the rights granted by the Constitution and pursuing them across history.
Today, the progressive liberals have to a large extent declared such aspirations nonsense and instead believe we should pursue their concept of Nirvana as it is revealed by intellectuals. While presented as a socialistic "equity" model of society, if you dig a bit deeper what you find is an extremely hierarchical design of society. Rather than being revolutionary it is reactionary...
At the core of the Democratic policy is a party dominated by the elite class comprised of the wealthy, the intellectuals and the senior political bureaucrats. Leadership of this elite group rotates to a new "emperor" selected largely by this aristocracy.
This aristocracy tells the poor they are victims and proceeds to promise the poor that they will be cared for in exchange for their loyalty. All the time they introduce laws and regulations that limit social mobility. So you will be taken care of and you will remain poor.
We need to get back to a government where the people leading us our working citizens taking time off to do "public service". Any politician that supports term limits of 12 years or less is serious about a "democracy", the rest want an aristocracy.
If my garbage man wants to spend his own money as he sees fit rather than have government determine how his money should be spent, do you recognize that its his right by virtue of having earned it picking up your garbage or do you believe it is the right of aristocracy of this country to determine how the garbage man's money is spent... leaving him just enough to insure he shows up to work tomorrow?
Today, Republicans and conservatives are increasingly comprised of people that still believe in the society that our Founding Fathers envisioned... long before slavery was outlawed, our Founding Fathers declared all men were created equal. That all humans had the right to pursuit happiness including the rights of gay couples to be married in the eyes of the state... it has taken a long time to approach those basic values... but over 200 years we have huge progress.
In fairness, the Republicans were thrown off for a short while by a large infusion of Democrats fifty years ago when the "blue dog" Democrats split away from the party. But slowly but surely their values are re-emerging and African Americans like Tim Scott are being elected based on their character and not their skin color in the Deep South state of South Carolina.
In contrast, Democrats are returning to their top down system of party. These elitist flock to places like Davos and Jackson Hole to determine how they should "rule the nation".
I think enough Americans still believe in what this country is all about, that we will get back to those core values outlined in the Declaration of Independence and enshrined in our Constitution. It will be a struggle, but deep down as Maslow made clear... once people have attained their basic needs and security, they want things that the elitists simply won't tolerate... freedom and the right to participate in government. We need more garbage men in Congress and fewer elitists.
