Ceaselessly, the babble goes on about the crossroads the Republican party faces after its rejection by almost 64 million voters.  And, of course, the discussion misses the point. The usual post-election hand-wringing in the wake of a political defeat has gone beyond usual recrimination.  Desperation has turned bitter.  Ill-informed and/or cynical political strategists and pollsters had hoodwinked the party’s faithful into thinking they were going to win an election with a nominee who truly considers half of the nation way, way beneath him.  Despondency has conflated into screeching on the radio about the old America dying.  The resentments that right-wing gasbags with microphones spew into the air unfortunately cloud the opportunity that America has before it.

America is not dying. It is at the doorstep of a stunning renaissance that was not obvious before and has been less so since the Bush Recession took hold and an unregulated financial system threatened global economic collapse.  It is hard in the midst of a difficult economic recovery to understand that the elements are in place for a national rebirth that can produce another great American Century.  The rise of other nations is a reality, but America is at the threshold of another golden moment that could rocket it, again, beyond any other nation in the world.  The country could be but a few years from an amazing turnaround, rebuilding itself from the ground up.  But instead of focusing on the treasure it holds in its hands, the old America can do no better than equate the new demography with new taxes.

The first piece for what is possible is in place. As the older population and many younger, near-childless couples reach their natural end, a new and younger population for the last four decades has been moving into place to secure the future. America is rebuilding itself demographically through the growth of the HispanicLatino population and through the eternal desire of millions from every nation in the world to come to America.  No, America will not die.  It will not be depopulated.  The America that will die – and not soon enough – is the nation that maltreated its minority populations.  That conspires, still, to dilute the vote of many of its citizens.  That dehumanizes gays and lesbians.  That continues to undervalue women.  That seeks to impose religious beliefs on others.  We have been killing that old America through evolved thinking, new laws, court decisions and affirmative initiatives and replacing it, sometimes unevenly and haphazardly, with equanimity and reason.

The second piece is a new energy era fueled by the development of less expensive natural gas that will enable the country to rebuild its manufacturing infrastructure and create new productive sectors in the economy that we have not imagined yet.  As the economy picks up steam and as the country comes to terms with its private and public debt, the country must embark on an actual physical rebuilding of many of its schools, roads, rail systems, bridges, dams and airports.  The United States historically is a relatively young nation but now labors with a relatively old physical plant.  Its subways and airports and trains were the first of their kind when they were built but now are antiquated.  Like the country’s population, these assets, too, must be rebuilt.  The point is that a new America is possible. All of it – from debt to new sewer systems to natural gas development – has to be done right, cleanly and safely.

These pieces need serious attention, and they should be the components of a new Republican way forward.  That is why, for starters, investing in education and reforming immigration are important.  The rates of growth of the HispanicLatino population itself have begun to stall and soon will fall, while its educational attainment must be induced to rise.  But the Republican party is obsessed about what was, not what can be.

If Republicans can come to understand the new formula for America’s success, it, too, might have a chance to succeed politically.  Until it deals with its inability to grow intellectually and get beyond believing that the new demography is peril not promise, the damage it can do to the country is real.

And a growing majority of the country understands that.

Jesse Treviño is the former editorial page editor of The Austin American-Statesman.