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Close to 40 years ago, I moved from Canada to the U.S. after acquiring a controlling interest in U.S. Global Investors. I’ve built my entire life and career here, and in all that time, I’ve never stopped marveling at my adopted country.
There’s something here you just can’t find anywhere else: the idea that an ordinary person can show up with a little energy and a lot of conviction and build something great.
That idea has a name, and this month, we’re celebrating its 250th anniversary.
Americans Are Gloomy, but the Fundamentals Tell Another Story
Sadly, many Americans have strong doubts about the nation’s future. Responding to a recent Gallup poll, over three quarters of Americans said they believed the Founding Fathers would be disappointed in how things have turned out, up from 42% back in 2001.
This gloom isn’t confined to just one party or age group.
Not to disqualify how other people feel, but I happen to agree with Warren Buffett. In his 2020 letter to shareholders, Buffett, who stepped down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway last year, wrote that there’s never been an “incubator for unleashing human potential like America… Never bet against America.”
The Numbers Behind American Exceptionalism
Consider what the U.S. actually produces. We’re home to roughly 4% of the world’s population yet we generate about 26% of its GDP… and more than half its total market capitalization.
Late last year, the Economist pointed out that wages in Mississippi, the poorest U.S. state, now exceed average wages in Britian, Canada and Germany.
Wealth has inevitably followed. UBS reports that the U.S. is home to roughly 24 million millionaires, which is about 40% of the world’s total and more than Western Europe and China. We have more millionaires, in fact, than the next nine countries combined.
The World Keeps Voting for America
After 250 years, how does the U.S. keep the engine humming?
The beauty of American innovation is that it’s decentralized and resilient to political cycles. From the railroads of the 1800s to power grids, aviation, the telephone, the integrated circuit, the internet and now artificial intelligence (AI), private capital has financed wave after wave of progress. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) ranked the U.S. third in the world for innovation, first in market and business sophistication, with Silicon Valley among the most innovation-intensive places on earth.
Even if certain Americans don’t always see it, international investors sure do. Foreign capital invested in the U.S. climbed to nearly $65 trillion at the end of 2025, a seven-fold increase from the beginning of the century, according to data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).
As I’ve said many times, capital goes where it’s treated best. By that measure, the world keeps voting for America.
Why the Rule of Law Comes First
To be clear, the U.S. faces real headwinds, some of them genuinely without precedent: mounting debt, an erosion of public confidence in our institutions and capitalism itself, and a creeping willingness on both sides of the aisle to treat the rule of law as optional when it’s inconvenient.
Let’s remember where the American experiment actually comes from. Long before 1776, the Magna Carta established the principle that even a king is bound by the law, that the people may assert their rights against an oppressive ruler, and that government power can be checked to protect those rights.
Those ideas flow directly into the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution: due process, trial by jury, no taxation without representation. No person may be deprived of life, liberty or property without the law’s protection. As Thomas Paine put it in Common Sense, “law is king.”
I believe the Magna Carta is the source code. Nothing that we enjoy as Americans would exist without bedrock guarantees that the rules apply equally and won’t be changed by force.
Protect that guarantee, and prosperity takes care of itself. Neglect it, and no amount of economic oomph will save us.
Capitalism Widening the Circle
There’s one more reason why I remain bullish on America, and it’s personal. The U.S. is a relentless wealth generator for literally millions upon millions of people. Since the exchange-traded fund (ETF) arrived in 1993, ownership of stocks has exploded. Nearly six in 10 U.S. households now own stocks, and the Investment Company Institute (ICI) notes that fund ownership has grown fastest over the past two decades among middle- and lower-income families.
This is capitalism doing what its critics swear it can’t: widening the circle.
That’s the country I chose almost 40 years ago, and it’s the country I’d choose again tomorrow.
So, as we mark 250 years, remember, it’s not unpatriotic to acknowledge the challenges. But don’t confuse a bad mood with a bad bet. I encourage you to hold true to the ideals carved into our founding documents… and never bet against America.
Related: Four Brexit Lessons That Still Matter for Protecting Your Wealth