Matthew McConaughey says US ‘going through puberty’ in July 4 message

Matthew McConaughey shared a 4th of July video message on Sunday in which he said the U.S. is “basically going through puberty,” and called for Americans to “keep maturing.”

“Happy Birthday America. Yes indeed, as we celebrate our independence today, as we celebrate our birth as a nation today that kick started our revolution to gain our sovereignty, let’s admit that this last year’s trip around the sun was also another head scratcher,” McConaughey said.

“But let’s also remember that we are babies, you know, as a country. We are basically going through puberty in comparison to other countries’ timeline, and we’re going to go through growing pains. We are going through growing pains. This is not an excuse to say, this is just a reality,” he added.

happy 245th birthday America – lets rock pic.twitter.com/MiLKZ0HN8y

— Matthew McConaughey (@McConaughey) July 4, 2021

The actor, who has recently hinted at political aspirations, took on an almost campaign-like demeanor as he continued to speak.

“I believe that America and you and I — I believe we’re an aspiration, right? We’re constantly in motion. We’re on the way, trying to get wiser, trying to get braver, trying to dream more, trying to do more, trying to be more fair, take the right kind of responsibilities to gain the right kind of freedoms,” McConaughey said.

He opined that people need to realize that “individual pursuits and desires” need to be supportive of “our collective responsibilities as Americans.”

“I want to be a little bit better, you want to be a little bit better, but to be on the way to being the best we can be, let’s make that a song we can’t not sing. Why? Because it’s who we are,” he added. “Let’s rock, America. Happy birthday, just keep living. I’ll see you there.”

In March, McConaughey said he was seriously considering a run for Texas governor.

“I’m looking into now, again, what is my leadership role?” he said while appearing on “The Balanced Voice” podcast. “Because I do think I have some things to teach and share, and what is my role? What’s my category in my next chapter of life that I’m going into?”

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in June said he hopes McConaughey does not run, saying the movie star could potentially be a “really formidable candidate.”