He plans to tear down all four pillars of the “American Century,” according to a Politico article here.
The phrase was coined by Henry Luce, publisher of Time and Life magazines, in 1941 and refers to America’s postwar dominance.
The concept, Politico says, has “guided the thinking of most policymakers and politicians” of both parties until now. It consisted of:
- A rules-based economic order that gave America access to international markets;
- Security guarantees for America’s allies, backed by our nation’s military strength;
- A liberal immigration system that helped lift America’s economy and “complemented military and trade partnerships” with non-Communist countries; and
- Exporting American expertise to other countries — doctors, engineers, teachers, etc.
Trump’s second presidency, unlike his first, promises to be organized and focused — on tearing down all four of those approaches to America’s place in the world. His foreign policy thinking harkens back to the prewar isolationism that kept America on the sidelines while dangerous fascist dictatorships threatened Europe. His economic thinking is to slam the door shut to international trade, and he made antipathy toward immigrants the centerpiece of his campaign.
“As for trusting in expertise,” Politico says, he’s putting an “anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist” in charge of health care, and he plans to throttle climate science.
After World War 2, the U.S. rebuilt Europe, at a cost to taxpayers of roughly $175 billion in today’s dollars; in the process, buying ourselves allies, and a hedge against Soviet expansion. It also got us markets for our exports of goods and agricultural products, and sources of imported raw materials.
The Bretton Woods system made the dollar the global reserve currency, enabling “the high-growth and low-inflation cycle behind post-war America’s prosperity.”
America’s NATO and other alliances resulted in the Cold War stalemate, but also “ensured that the U.S. would enjoy a preeminent position in trade and financial policymaking,” although at the cost of maintaining far-flung military bases and often allying with autocratic regimes.
And after World War 2, opening America’s gates to immigration “flooded the country with educated professionals,” such that by the early 1970s nearly half of America’s doctors were foreign-born. In those days, immigration was seen as a “distinguishing feature of American strength.” Today, immigrants (including illegals) help America navigate a demographic decline that “threatens economic growth, the future of entitlement programs, and national security.”
And America venerated its experts in fields like medicine, engineering, and science. “Presidents from Truman through Barack Obama — Democrats and Republicans alike — staffed the government with professionally trained scientists, economists and other academics.” For better or worse, “the revolving door between elite universities and government swung quickly and constantly.”
Trump doesn’t believe in any of this, and is turning his back on all of it. It’s hard to imagine that turning out well; but we trust our democratic processes, and it’s what the voters chose. This time, unlike 2016, Trump won the popular vote, giving him a stature and mandate he didn’t have before. The people have chosen a leader who intends to “dismantle and repudiate the American Century framework.”
That framework defined America’s “trajectory for well over 80 years.” It made the U. S. “a very prosperous and powerful country.” Now, we plunge forward into an uncertain future that likely will be filled with unintended consequences.