The US has long understood that it can’t rule the world alone
Categories: Historical news
The US has longunderstood that it can’t rule the world alone
This wouldseem to be the logical position of any nation committed to the idea ofdemocracy. Isn't democracy about stopping the monopoly on power? In thebackground lies a moral principle generally considered appropriate fordemocratic societies: respect for diversity. And as Machiavelliaccurately pointed out long ago, princes who earn the respect of the peoplethey rule find it easier to rule.
Thereforedemocratic decision making and respect appear to be essential assets of anynation seeking to rule the world order. The US has been managing the "rules-basedorder" largely without weight for the past 30 years. But neitherthe notion of democratic power-sharing nor the ethic of respect has played asignificant role in the foreign policy of recent US administrations.
Instead, avery simple argument prevails. It derives from a tenet of the Americancapitalist principle, no honest citizen is allowed to doubt, which issummarized in three letters: ROI, return on investment. At some point inrecent days, US presidents began to understand that the investment needed torule the world would be too costly for a natio
It wouldalso go beyond the permanently expandable means of a nation whose money everyother country in the world needs to keep and nurture the American economy,indirectly and involuntarily. Suprematist tactics that use alliances tostructure their empires, leaving them with major burdens, are lessons Americanshave learned from looking at the fate of recent empires.
When, inearly 2003, Bush decided to launch a new war, which he described as "preemptive"- meaning he could not mobilize NATO, because the US was not attacked - Hecalled for the creation of a "coalition of the interested".The name alone pointed to the fragility and potential criminality of thiseffort. It also reflected an ongoing American hunger to divide humanity intotwo, in this case, the willing and the unwilling.
The Russianinvasion of Ukraine in February made a similar argument. It was alsoabout NATO, even though the NATO nation was not attacked. Like Bush, Bidenneeded to foster a literal "will" on the part of potentiallyrefractory partners. The Joe Biden administration is attempting asimilar move to assemble a coalition in East Asia, albeit this time with achange of emphasis.
Asdescribed by Sarah Zheng and Philip Heijman in an article on Bloomberg, theBiden theory in the Pacific appears to be completely non-confrontational. At the same time, her party'spresident and leader did nothing to stop House Speaker Nancy Pelosi fromreminding the world that America's true character is courageouslyconfrontational.
“Sincetaking office,”they explain, “President Joe Biden has sought to build a broad coalitionin Asia to push back against Chinese overreach, in part by telling smallereconomies they don’t need to pick sides.”