Unity is in our blood. We are the UNITED States of America. Our traditional motto is e pluribus unum, Latin for “out of many, one.” Our pledge of allegiance declares us to be “one nation, indivisible.”

But right now, we are a deeply divided nation. To deal with the many threats facing our country, we must find a way to come together. Politicians routinely promise to make that happen. Unfortunately, they don’t really mean it.

But just what does unity look like? It’s not either side of the political abyss suddenly having an epiphany, abandoning long-held views. It’s not a nation of all Democrats or all Republicans, all progressives or all conservatives. No, that’s not going to happen — nor should it.

Very simply, we are a people who share common bonds, common blessings, common love of country, and common aspirations for our nation’s and our children’s futures. We may not all agree on how to achieve those aspirations, but in truth, we have more in common than differences. If we are to behave as a unified citizenry, we need only to respect one another’s right to disagree, to be willing to consider the other’s point of view, and on that basis to agree on a path forward that serves our common objectives.

Easier said than done, we know — but that formula has kept our nation on the right track for nearly two and a half centuries. Going forward in perilous times, we should embrace it fully, and accept nothing less from our elected leaders.

Which brings us to the state of unity in today’s politics in this election year. Hint: it’s not good.

On the Republican side, media and pundits seem to have decided that former President Donald Trump already has the GOP nomination in the bag. Even though the primaries have barely started, he has so far secured only 32 of the needed 1,215 delegates, and he is facing a mountain of legal obstacles between now and election day.

And on the other side, Democrats continue to pretend to be rock solid behind the reelection of their aged, unpopular President Joe Biden, backed up by a VP with even lower popularity. In my view (and I believe that of many Americans), there are better candidates on both sides. And neither Trump nor Biden has demonstrated meaningful interest in unifying our nation.

In his speech following his convincing win in the Iowa caucuses, Trump conveyed an entirely new tone; he was gracious, complimenting his two competitors on their campaigns, and then he waxed eloquently about his plans to unify Americans, both Republicans and the nation as a whole. He sounded downright presidential.

But not for long. The GOP primary stage moved to New Hampshire and the old Trump came back to life. Despite another solid win, he was infuriated by Nikki Haley’s better-than-expected performance and her dogged plans to stay in the race. How dare she?

In a blistering post the next day on his Truth Social site, Trump vowed: “Anybody that makes a contribution to Birdbrain, from this moment forth, will be permanently barred from the MAGA Camp. We don’t want them and will not accept them.”

That is yet another ego-driven rant, reminiscent of the politically reckless behavior that recently cost the GOP two critical U.S. Senate seats. Trump may muscle his GOP opponents aside, but he cannot win a general election supported by only a splintered Republican base. Moreover, it reinforces the uneasiness of all who have watched him in action. Haley served with distinction in the Trump administration as the U.S. ambassador to the UN. Reportedly, Mr. Trump assigns very high importance to loyalty — that is, loyalty to him — but he has little interest in returning that loyalty to those who have worked on his behalf.

Trump’s newfound and undisguised contempt for Haley, as with his disregard for so many others who helped his administration succeed, speaks volumes about his true instincts about unity.

Trump’s insincere pledge in Iowa was not the first time we’ve heard a heartwarming but completely phony promise of unity. In his soaring inaugural address, Biden vowed to be “the president for all Americans,” evoking a glimmer of hope even among his skeptics.

It was a mirage. Since that day, there has been no hint of healing from Biden. On the contrary, he passes no opportunity to denigrate his Republican adversaries as racist, sexist, intolerant, uncaring, greedy, etc. He tells us that the despicable MAGA Republicans (whatever that is — somehow making America great doesn’t seem too bad) are the worst of the batch, intent on destroying democracy, a threat to our nation’s survival.

What’s with these guys? Can we no longer fight hard but still respect our adversaries? Has either of them ever watched an Army-Navy football game?

From the outside looking in, my sense is that neither Biden nor Trump has any commitment to unify our nation. We can do better.