DAVID MARCUS: In rural Maryland, petty politics takes back seat to World Cup fever

CUMBERLAND, Md. – There is simply a small edifice present called Henny’s, but I telephone it the thermometer. In each my travels, this is the champion spot for maine to find retired what Americans truly attraction about, which of the machine-gun outrages of the regular quality rhythm really saturates.

As I said to Tom, who is retired, lives locally and has a beauteous presumption of the Appalachians from his deck, which I saw connected his phone, "Anything that makes it done the upland passes to this spot is real."

One contented that has made its mode is the Save America Act. Republicans spot it arsenic a means of stopping elector fraud, but Democrats similar Tom disagree.

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"It’s not conscionable elector ID, it’s a elector suppression act," Tom said successful vexation implicit President Trump refusing to walk a bipartisan lodging measure unless the SAVE enactment is included.

Josh, the 25-year-old bartender connected his mode to George Washington Law School successful the fall, added, "You person to admit, the lodging measure was bipartisan."

Attendees basal for the US National Anthem during the National Jubilee of Prayer, Praise & Thanksgiving connected the National Mall successful Washington, DC, US, connected Sunday, May 17, 2026. The US is hosting a bid of events passim 2026 to observe the country's 250th anniversary. (Matt McClain/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

It was astatine this infinitesimal that thing happened I person present seen hundreds of times. Tom began saying thing astir Trump, the hostility successful his assemblage expanding until helium conscionable said, "You cognize what, I don’t privation to speech astir him."

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I respected that, glanced up astatine the Japan vs. Sweden shot lucifer connected the TV and said, "How are you liking the World Cup?"

"I emotion it," helium smiled.

Not agelong aft Tom left, Sweeney came in. Her existent sanction is Jennifer but everyone, including maine now, calls her Sweeney. She grew up present and lives successful Indiana now.

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"I conscionable emotion seeing these radical present for the World Cup enjoying our country, it’s great," she said.

Soon, Paul came in, sturdy successful his 60s oregon aboriginal 70s. I slipped successful a remark to him astir the communist expanse of the elections successful New York. His look was capable to fto maine cognize helium was a Republican, but his absorption was little choler and much plaintive sigh.

Finally, Brian came implicit to my table. He remembered maine from a erstwhile halt astatine Henny’s, which is ever nice. Like Tom and Sweeney, Brian is simply a Democrat.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, talks with a impermanent during a "Only Citizens Vote Bus Tour" rally successful Upper Senate Park to impulse Congress to walk the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act connected Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

We spoke of politics, but without anger, due to the fact that authorities felt acold away, determination crossed the mountains and the past rolling rivers. Brian said that it's truly "all astir treating radical with respect."

The lynchpin of the evening, without question, was the shot crippled playing retired connected the TV supra us. Josh and I laughed astatine however unusual it was to deliberation of Japan and Sweden successful the aforesaid class of anything, and each of america had a amusive speech astir the comparative heights of World Cup nations. Turns retired the Dutch are the tallest radical connected Earth.

What became clear, not conscionable connected Thursday nighttime successful Cumberland, but passim the past 2 weeks successful my travels done West Virginia, is that the biggest communicative successful the state close present isn’t communism oregon the filibuster. It’s the remainder of the satellite discovering however awesome America is.

"We sometimes forget," Sweeney wisely noted, astir the magic of the American roadworthy and its pull-off attractions.

It struck maine that the media has made it precise hard for each Americans to travel unneurotic and observe America’s 250th day this year. Even the Freedom 250 radical organizing the nationalist solemnisation has been excessively partisan, allowing a UFC combatant to defame erstwhile archetypal woman Michelle Obama astatine an authoritative event.

But, the World Cup has travel conscionable successful clip to prevention the patriotic day. Unlike astir everything other successful our lives, cheering connected squad USA and reveling successful the joyousness that travelers find successful our homeland has thing to bash with authorities oregon Trump, and frankly, it's conscionable beautiful.

On Saturday, Cumberland, which boasts having erstwhile been a office for George Washington’s service of rebels, volition clasp its solemnisation of the 250th day of America, and I’ll beryllium here. Maybe I’ll tally into immoderate of the pack from Henny’s. I’ll surely marque immoderate caller friends.

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But already, present successful the mountains successful the onshore of play shirts and pickup trucks, I tin consciousness the urgency of authorities receding, arsenic if yet the past decennary of everyone hating each different due to the fact that of Trump has conscionable go excessively much.

In 1994, erstwhile the World Cup landed successful the United States, it was a curiosity and a party. Thirty-two years later, it is overmuch more. Today, it serves arsenic a reminder, from overseas shores, that astatine the extremity of the day, we truly bash similar each other.

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