Dolly Parton “is the best version of America, like America as it fancies itself to be,” says Michelle Cottle, a co-host of the “Matter of Opinion” podcast, on a recent episode. She is “the embodiment of the American dream — smart, savvy, self-made,” Michelle says. “She’s not aggrieved or defensive. She doesn’t make anyone feel less than her. Her work speaks to the people who feel they don’t fit in.” She’s long been a towering queer icon, and yet she mostly aims to be apolitical. @Dolly Parton doesn’t like partisan squabbling, “which is really what most Americans think about partisan squabbling,” says Michelle. “But she casts it as like this matter of down-home common sense and decency.” Click the link in our bio to listen to Michelle and the other co-hosts of the “Matter of Opinion” podcast discuss their picks for the piece of culture that best captures America. #DollyParton #americandream #nytopinion