Ich bin ein Amerikaner

Say what you will about Obama's Berlin speech--I found the contents humdrum and the delivery droning and monotonous--it proves that American Exceptionalism remains alive and well. A few years ago, Lech Walesa, one of the great heroes of the Cold War, visited Boston, and delivered his speech at some beer hall in Dorchester. Most foreign heads of state would be lucky to do as well. The only ones I can imagine filling Boston Common are Nelson Mandela, the Dalai Lama, and the Pope.

Obama's appeal to Ze Chermins--free beer and bratwurst aside--is no less spiritual. They came because for all the talk of the rise of China, Russia, and India, America still matters to the world, and especially to Europe, in a profoundly different way. While they would no doubt be pleased if Hu Jintao or Dmitry Medvedev visited and said how much he liked them, I cannot think they would be terribly excited either. Russia and China do not represent anything to the world except lakes of vodka and cheap manufactured goods.

In their enthusiasm for the Democratic candidate, the Germans demonstrate that they do not merely want Americans to like them, they really want to like us as well. I cannot think of any other nation for which this is true, for it is not a matter just of trade policies and other dry diplomacy, but a transcendant, moral imperative. The US has, for its entire history, represented something profoundly radical in the world, and it remains so today. For all his manifold flaws, Obama does embody many of our deepest ideals.