What are the roots of the current divisiveness of American politics/discourse?

[SingingAnalyst]

America has always been divided on certain issues, but seldom if ever has the division been as existential for the Republic as it is today.

The years leading up to the Civil War and the Vietnam War era were certainly close.

The division today appears to be between those who believe America is-- and/or ought to be-- exceptional; and those who believe America is not-- and/or ought not be-- exceptional.

(So deep is the division that it transcends the is-ought gap).

On one side are those who believe America is and ought to be a beacon of hope, a shining city on a hill, for those who sacrifice, work hard, and play by the rules.

On the other side are those who believe America is and ought to be a member of the world community-- no more or less powerful than other nations-- and perhaps no different except in demography and geography.

Religion fuels much of the divide, with many (though, importantly, not all) in the first group claiming that America is and ought to be a Christian nation, that abortion and SSM should be forbidden, etc.; while those in the second group argue America ought to be open and inclusive to all nations, religions, lifestyles, etc.

What is different today is that the two major parties almost perfectly represent these two strains of thought.

Sadly, there appears to be little hope of healing the divide. Two generations after the passage of the Civil Rights Act, Blacks are as monolithically Democratic in their voting and as conscious of racism (police brutality, etc.) in their daily lives as ever-- and many whites, having (in the minds of many) made numerous concessions to Black demands, feel slighted and unappreciated. The first election after Obergefell v. Hodges saw gays and lesbians give record high levels of support to the Democrats. After nearly half a century of Jewish-Christian dialogue, the electoral rift between Jews on the one hand and Evangelicals/Catholics on the other, is as wide as or wider than ever.

As so much of the American exceptionalist view is based on negative religious teachings (mankind is essentially evil; our true hope is not in this world but in the world to come; the world is fundamentally unjust), I see little hope that this view can prevail or capture the attention of too many young Americans-- which is why the non-exceptionalist view seems to be prevailing in the larger culture (and has all but taken over Hollywood, secular universities, etc.)

The battle ought to be between competing methods of how to best provide for the American people; the last election that I think remotely resembled this model was 1976. Instead, it is dominated by competing visions-- with the most ignorant and unreasonable on both sides framing the debate (and the second group having the advantage of greater education and a more positive, life-affirming worldview, at least in theory).