The BDN Opinion section operates independently and does not set newsroom policies or contribute to reporting or editing articles elsewhere in the newspaper or on bangordailynews.com. At the recent Republican National Convention, President Donald Trump declared what most Americans grow up hearing: “America is the greatest and most exceptional nation in the history of the world.” My wife and I heard these words while living in a distant land, where people see things differently. We’ve come to Canada. OK, Canada is not distant geographically; it’s next door.