Apparently most people don’t understand the definition of “American Exceptionalism” and rest entirely on the definition of exception.
“American exceptionalism does not mean that Americans are better than others or that America is the greatest country ever. Nor does it imply that the rules don’t apply to America. American exceptionalism is a verifiable claim about the different principles on which the country stands. And what it implies is that America has a responsibility to stand for liberty both at home and abroad.”
The bottom line is what is exceptional about America is its founding on the belief that rights come from God, not the state. This is exceptional and unique in the world.
And unfortunately a lot of Americans no longer turn to God when the hard times come but instead turn to the state.
That's well put.
Not being very religious myself I might say the same sort of thing with a little different wording: What's exceptional about American is the quality of the ideas our country was founded on -- respect for freedom and the rights of the individual.
These ideas are exceptionally good, compared with the ideas that other countries use to organize themselves. These ideas make us an exceptionally good country -- at least when we follow them.
Call me a "bitter clinger," but that's my view and I'm sticking with it.