Morning in America?

Ronald Reagan did so very well because he voiced an optimism that had been absent in the aftermath of Watergate, Vietnam, the Iran hostage crisis, stagflation, etc.  Someone noted in the twitterverse that the GOP today has lost this thread.  Today just proves it some more.  We shall see how the GOP candidates respond to the tale of Ahmed, the kid who built a clock and got arrested for it.

The Democratic take:

Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It's what makes America great.

— President Obama (@POTUS) September 16, 2015

Assumptions and fear don't keep us safe—they hold us back. Ahmed, stay curious and keep building. https://t.co/ywrlHUw3g1

— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) September 16, 2015

Obama and Clinton are far more positive, far less fearful, at least today, than the folks in Texas and probably the folks debating tonight.

Indeed, if HRC thinks at all about this, she should seize this and run with it--Americans want optimism, especially after fourteen years of fear.  I think they would prefer a more positive vision of America.  Despite ISIS and Ukraine and China, the American story is pretty positive today.  And as a candidate who had served in the current administration and is seen as the continuation of the current administration, focusing on the positive--jobs, GDP growth, diminished role in complex wars, a decent deal with Iran, etc,--being positive should be in Hillary Clinton's best interest.

It is time we started focusing on what we can do and not what we should avoid.  What is good and what we can improve, rather than what we need to fear.