What does it mean to be an American? I live in Texas, arguably the most American of all the states, so I think about this question a lot.

Here, it's common to see cowboys on horseback, a woman openly carrying a 9mm pistol while picking up her Starbucks order, or my kids arguing over which barbecue joint is best. The Western spirit runs from the Alamo to the Hill Country to the cobblestone streets of the Fort Worth stockyards. It's romantic, exhilarating and so, so American.

I wondered about this question while watching our European friends marvel at America's conveniences and customs during the World Cup. Many Democrats can't believe that men and women from England, Germany or Scotland would travel all the way here to watch soccer matches and end up falling in love with our food, air conditioning and ice cubes.

America's abundance is easy to admire. What's easier to forget is that prosperity isn't what made America exceptional. Liberty did.

Conservatives are leading the fight to protect our liberties

In much of the world, rights are treated as privileges the government grants to its citizens. In the American system, it's the opposite: Rights are inherent to the individual, and the Constitution exists to dictate what government cannot do to you. It's an extraordinary concept, and one conservatives have committed to........

© USA TODAY