Vance rejects 'zero-sum' view of US
US Vice President JD Vance used America's 250th Independence Day celebrations on Saturday to push back against what he called a "two-dimensional" view of the country, urging Americans to reject narratives centred only on the nation's failures and instead embrace a shared history of achievement and unity.
Aboard the USS Kearsarge in New York Harbour during the US Navy's 250th anniversary celebration, Vance said the country's history should be understood through the collective efforts of generations of Americans rather than through political or ideological divisions.
"As much as all of us, whether we're Democrat or Republican, whatever our political persuasion, all of us are celebrating," Vance said.
He acknowledged that critics would offer a different interpretation of America's past.
"You will hear a couple small but loud voices today speak obsessively not of our national greatness but of our national imperfections," he said.
"They will speak of the powerless and the dispossessed. They will tell you that America is just another country where the weak struggle against the strong and if they acknowledge that there is anything to be proud of in our history, they'll say it's the fact that sometimes the powerless have won a zero-sum battle."
"They're wrong."
Vance argued that America's story was built on cooperation across generations and professions rather than conflict between competing groups.
"America's greatness is built by cooperation between all of our citizens from every single walk of American life," he said while recounting the contributions of historical figures including George Washington, engineer James Buchanan Eads and industrialist Henry Kaiser.
The Vice President said every generation had contributed to the country's development, from soldiers who fought for independence to factory workers, engineers and shipbuilders who helped build the nation's industrial and military strength.
"Our history is one of people carving a great civilization out of the wilderness," he said.
Vance urged Americans to reject what he described as simplistic portrayals of both their fellow citizens and their country.
"So what I'd ask you to do, my fellow Americans, on our 250th birthday is to reject the two-dimensional view of your fellow citizens and reject the two-dimensional view of your country."
"Reject that America is a place for zero-sum thinking because it is not."
He also appealed for a more balanced understanding of the country's past.
"Reject the view of your nation that sees only its sins but not its grace and its greatness."
According to Vance, America's accomplishments were possible because citizens worked together despite political and social differences.
"Everything that we have done as a country, we have done together. Not as citizens divided against each other, but as a common people working towards a common future."
He concluded by calling on Americans to carry that spirit forward.
"All of us will need to do our part to create the next 250 years of American greatness," Vance said. "Today, my friends, we celebrate, and tomorrow we get back to work."
The speech came as the United States marked the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence with ceremonies across the country.
