Why I’m optimistic about 2022 — and beyond 

There are reasons to be pessimistic about the future of this country, but there are more reasons to be optimistic. 

For me, a Christmas Day visit to the National Mall clinched the optimistic case. Wandering through the crowds — and they were crowds — thronging the Washington Monument, the World War II Memorial, and the Lincoln Memorial, every color of the human rainbow was represented. Moreover, from snippets of various languages overheard, it was evident that many had been born outside of the U.S. So these were folks with likely little or no direct linkage to the people and events commemorated on the mall. And yet there they were, snapping selfies, pushing baby carriages, and taking in the sights.

I can’t say for sure if these people were U.S. citizens, or undocumented migrants, or tourists. Yet I can assert that they were all eager to have a look at some of America’s most iconic structures. This tells me that, through all the tribulations of the last few decades, America is still a magnet.

America as an idea — the idea of freedom, the idea of tolerance, the idea of upward mobility — still abides. 

And I felt this even more after I read a Dec. 28 tweet-thread from Amjad Masad, a Jordanian-born tech entrepreneur, now a U.S. citizen in Silicon Valley. Masad wrote that he came to the U.S. a decade ago “with nothing but credit card debt.” Yet now, “after one startup exit, one big tech job, and one unicorn, I genuinely believe that it wouldn’t have been possible anywhere else in the world.” And then he listed 10 things that he loves about this country, everything from “work ethic” to “rewarding talent” to “open to weirdos.”

Masad’s thread went viral, and The Wall Street Journal’s Peggy Noonan picked it up. Noting that much of the news and commentary in recent years has been tilted toward the negative, Noonan wrote, “the thread was a breath of fresh air.” She added: “Maybe those who are new here and observe us with fresh eyes see more clearly than we do. As long as our immigrants are talking like this, maybe we’ve still got it goin’ on.”

So yes, the American Idea is still robust. Although in point of fact, it’s more than an idea: Here, we share a broad commitment to the Constitution and to the rule of law — and to the honest administration of that law; hence, another item on Masad’s list: “I’ve never been asked for a bribe.”

Now some will say that America isn’t so much an idea as it is a nation with a specific history — and a specific ethnocultural history at that. For evidence, they might point to Federalist #2, written by John Jay: “Providence has been pleased to give this one connected country to one united people — a people descended from the same ancestors, speaking the same language, professing the same religion.” 

Yet even in 1787, when Jay wrote those words, English-speaking Whites were hardly alone on this continent. Our future 50-state nation was also inhabited by many others, including — but not limited to — enslaved Blacks, free Blacks, Native Americans, German speakers, Pacific Islanders, Spaniards, Mexicans, Frenchmen — and even Russians in Alaska.

So, we can see: The future melting pot was already evident in Jay’s time — and myriad peoples since have been added. Today, in the 21st century, we’ve incorporated all that heritage, and all that human capital, and we’re a great nation. So, score one for universality, for America as an idea.

With that in mind, here’s a prediction for 2022 and beyond: Even as we grapple with our differences and our problems, folks from around the world are still going to want to come here. Of course, we’re under no obligation to accept them all — the rule of law should always prevail — and yet we’re still accepting more: An estimated 97,000 Afghans have come here, legally, since 2001.

One other thing: If the Chinese regime continues to stamp out what remains of freedom in that country, there will an influx, too, from there to here. Indeed, just as the stream of refugees from the old Soviet Union prefigured the collapse of that evil empire, a flight from China could portend the fall of the Chinese Communist Party.

Voting with one’s feet means a lot.

All over the world, people are “voting” for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Thus, the Founders have been proven right: They had a great idea, establishing “a new order for the ages.”

James P. Pinkerton served as a domestic policy aide in the White Houses of Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush.