As the United States enters its 250th year, it may seem we are a nation divided, but a closer, dispassionate examination reveals Americans are right where they have always been—in the middle clinging to the Constitution. Democrats and Republicans would like to believe most Americans identify with their party or the other, but average Americans are not particularly partisan. They may have leanings to one party or the other, but generally average voters gravitate to common-sense policies. They simply want what works; they want results.

Hard-working Americans just want to earn a good living, raise their families, and hand off a better country to their children. They long for law and order; they want safe streets in their neighborhoods, and domestic security in a dangerous world. They want economic opportunity: good jobs to provide for their families and the liberty to start a business to better their lives. In America still today, any hard-working American can pursue the American Dream. Quite simply, Americans want to live in peace with the capacity and opportunity to prosper.

Democrats and Republicans tend to wallow in hyper-partisan bickering because it helps consolidate power and raise money, but it divides Americans along party lines. Treating governance like a bitter sports rivalry is typically unproductive. The constant partisan struggles can be somewhat entertaining and superficially gratifying, but it’s seldom fruitful – nothing gets done. Decades of partisan wrangling have created mostly stagnation.

Our two-party system has generally worked for more than a century, but it requires that the two parties are both relatively close to the Constitution. Unfortunately, we are mired in the false paradigm of right versus left and further that both extremes are harmful, but that concept erroneously paints governance under our Constitutional Republic as extreme – it is not! Socialism or communism are extreme, but Democrats want you to believe Republicans are fascists. Republicans seek to abide by the Constitution, which is actually in the middle.

The real debate is between tyranny and anarchy—oppressive big government verses lawlessness with no government. The Democrat Party has sadly trended to tyranny and has now been hopelessly hijacked by totalitarian forces that endorse socialism and even communism. They offer an all-powerful government to provide your every need, but it must also confiscate all wealth and liberty to fulfill their hollow promises. Democrats insist their tyranny is Constitutional and not extreme, but it requires blind fealty and the suspension of liberty and wealth to attain equity.

Americans cherish freedom and they intrinsically know freedom requires personal responsibility. They understand when you don’t provide for yourself, you are inherently beholden to whoever provides your needs. Such an all-powerful government controls opportunity, resources, and your livelihood. The citizens are not in control; the government is in control. It’s quite obviously the road to serfdom, and working Americans have consistently rejected it for two and half centuries.

It’s plain common sense that to enjoy liberty, citizens must be self-regulating. When citizens are irresponsible and unruly, they flirt with anarchy or invite tyrants to maintain order. Democrats foment chaos, dependence, and lawlessness with open borders, free unearned benefits, redistribution of wealth, and few if any consequences for breaking the law. It’s absurd and crazy. It’s socialism, and it fails to improve the human condition every time it’s tried.

While Democrat policies seem to be nonsensical, they're actually a sinister strategy to foster chaos and dependence, so the government can claim more power. The more power the government asserts, the less freedom citizens retain. Therefore, Americans consistently favor common-sense policies that keep us safe, provide infrastructure for a nation to function, protect our God-given rights, and mostly just create opportunity.

It’s just common sense that a nation smothers under an oppressive government or tyranny, and it spins out of control with no effective laws due to anarchy. Further, anarchy and tyranny are less opposite ends of the spectrum and more two sides of a coin. Anarchy easily leads to tyranny and tyranny also easily leads to anarchy. That’s why Democrats live in both spaces with ANTIFA on one hand and COMMUNISTS on the other.

Constitutional governance is the balance of just enough laws and just enough liberty to allow freedom where opportunity and rights coexist harmoniously. It’s essentially keeping the coin of anarchy and tyranny on its edge. Our Constitutional Republic was designed to maintain that balance, so most Republicans and a few Democrats trying to maintain that balance are in the middle. Hostage to a rabid vocal base, the current Democrat Party only offers extremes, and that’s why they are imploding.

Despite incessant malicious mocking by press and pundits, President Trump is enjoying strong steady support and succeeding wildly by staking out that balance between laws and liberty. His policies are all based on common sense. Secure the border to make us safer, stimulate the economy to create opportunities, and dismantle an out-of-control government to return power to the people. It’s working and Americans love it!

America has been generally declining the past couple decades and during the Biden Administration it felt like the country was in free fall and there was no hope of saving the country. We seemed destined to perpetual decline and malaise, but after just a few months of common-sense governance by a bold courageous leader, America is back, and hope is brimming.

Trump deserves huge credit, but the potential and power of our Constitutional Republic was always there; it resides in the hearts of every American. It may have been somewhat dormant or suppressed by progressive totalitarian policies, but the American spirit was never vanquished. The miraculous turn around in less than half a year simply proves the resilience and resoluteness of hardy Americans that always cling to our superior Constitutional Republic.

America still has what it takes. We only need a genuine leader and need only to stand on our convictions. America is becoming great again. It will truly be a Happy Independence Day!

“When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan” (Proverbs 29:2).

(EDITOR'S NOTE: For thoughtful background on the above topic, consider W. Cleon Skousen's book "The 5,000 Year Leap." Skousen, of course, is well known for his definitive book "The Naked Communist"—and in the 2000 election, was a prominent supporter of Dr. Alan Keyes.)

Pete Riehm is a Navy Veteran, conservative activist, and columnist in south Alabama. Email him at peteriehm@bellsouth.net or read all his columns at http://www.renewamerica.com/.