The story of 2014: America is back

But amid all these stories of 2014, the one that may be the most important is one that no one would have expected in the wake of the debacle in Iraq, the long slog through Afghanistan, the financial crisis of 2008 to 2009, or the seemingly deepening leadership crisis in Washington, D.C.

America is back. Despite Washington. Despite lousy leadership. Despite the rise of other great powers. Back because its economy is resilient. Back because the other great powers are each facing deep challenges at home — from European coherence to corruption and the slowing growth of job creation in China. Back because America remains a hotbed of innovation. Back because the fiscal deficit that threatened it has receded along with the recession that stirred up fears. Back because it proved that even at a low point in political creativity, the country could flourish — especially in light of the fact that that low point is likely to end soon.

This doesn’t diminish the great problems facing the United States — not just in dysfunctional Washington but in terms of the growing inequality in our economy, our underinvestment in infrastructure, the weakening of our friends, the strengthening of some rivals. But looking at the world today, it is arguable that the United States has never faced fewer major rivals — rivals capable of existential threats or forcing strategic realignment — and, even among those atop that list, notably China, it is clear their intentions are not likely to manifest themselves in the form of conflict or attack in the near future.

This is, to be sure, a resurgence manufactured outside of D.C., and one that is fraught with risks, but one that outstrips in importance the headline-grabbing struggles of regions torn apart by models and cultural divides that are depleting them of relevance, that outstrips the rise of the rest in the near term, that confounds past theories, and that could be accelerated should the United States actually enter a period of strong leadership after the muddled recent past. Should Obama be given credit for this resurgence? Of course.