In a recent Politico article, the magazine interviewed Senator Mitch McConnell, the former Republican leader, about his longtime nemesis, President Donald Trump. McConnell discussed foreign policy, and how the Trump administration contained too many Isolationists, and how important it was that Trump attacked Iran to remove the threat of nuclear weapons from that anti-American, terror-sponsoring, radical Messianic Shia Muslim nation.
According to Politico, McConnell now sees this as a “teachable moment” and “a chance to push the president towards a Reaganite foreign policy.”
Let’s unpack that statement to evaluate the truth of it, shall we?
The Republican Party has a diverse view on foreign policy in its modern coalition. I count at least four different factions. They include:
- The Jacksonians
- The Wilsonians
- The Restrainers
- The True Realists
It is important to realize that each faction is not totally separate, but part of one long continuum, meaning people on it may not fit easily into a faction and can move from one faction to another.
Named after President Andrew Jackson, the Jacksonian faction is certainly the faction with which President Trump identifies. Jacksonians marry “grass roots disdain for elites, deep suspicion of overseas entanglements – and obsession with America power and sovereignty.” They are characterized by an unwillingness to follow the dictates of the international community, which rarely has American interests in mind. They also avoid acting solely based on high minded principles such spreading freedom or democracy, but they are far from isolationists, as they are not afraid of kinetic military actions, for example.
Many political commentators love to label this faction as “neocons”. I reiterate my prior objections to this term, and also add to my criticisms this from Mark Levin. President Wilson wanted to make the world “safe for democracy” by spreading democratic ideals throughout the world.
He intervened in the First World War to do so. He pushed for the creation of international organizations, like the League of Nations, the precursor of the UN. This led directly to the creation of the international elites that entangled the U.S. in world affairs and eventually led to the suppression of American interests in favor of often anti-American “world” interests. Importantly, the Wilsonians have a fondness for “democracy building” and believe strongly in the “Pottery Barn Rule”, articulated by Secretary of State Colin Powell, which I have been critical of.
Wilson’s ideology has been followed by a bipartisan cast of presidents since his time, including Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower (maybe?), John Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and (the husk of) Joe Biden.
The Restrainers, as they like to call themselves, are also referred to as Isolationists or “Doves” by their critics. Some of them claim to be Realists, but their realism is not very real (see below). They take very seriously the speech by President George Washington, which called for the (then) new U.S. to avoid getting involved in the schemes of the warlike European powers. This speech was written during a totally different world where the U.S. was not the pre-eminent world power, before there were such international dangers as Communism, Radical Islam, and National Socialism, and before there were nuclear weapons and missiles, and other advanced technology that could endanger the U.S.
The Restrainers want to avoid most, if not all, wars, unless the U.S. is openly invaded (which does not cover more secretive invasions such as those done by the foreign leftists and the radical Muslims). This would almost certainly have included both World Wars. The Restrainers want to avoid the U.S. maintaining its superpower status by getting involved in any way, shape or form with foreign conflicts (including even selling weapons to the nations at war). As a result, the Restrainers are known for wanting to avoid any involvement with the current conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.
There is no question that many of the Restrainers are flakes. There are loads of antisemites among them, who hide behind restraint but just hate Jews, and thus frequently disparage Israel in favor of deadly anti-American nations such as Iran. See this guy. Others are just (sometimes paid) simps for Russia, China, Qatar, or other enemy nations.
Some Restrainers honestly believe in avoiding almost all wars. But in the modern world, this is hard to do, and as a result, no presidents in the modern era have been part of this faction.
Unlike the fake realists, the true realists attempt to see the world as it is and to advance American interests in a calculating manner. Think Mr. Spock from the television show Star Trek. Sometimes the True Realists seek to avoid any discussion of spreading democracy or freedom, but they don’t always do so. They are not unwilling to use kinetic action to accomplish their objectives, so they certainly are not Restrainers. They are willing to listen to the international elites and to make speeches echoing elite principles, but they are also willing to force those elites to prioritize American interests as well.
There have been two True Realist presidencies in modern times – President Richard Nixon and President George H. W. Bush (and maybe a third in President Gerald Ford). Nixon is known for appointing Mr. Realism, Henry Kissinger, as his premier foreign policy maker. And Bush is known for Desert Storm, where, in a manner quite unlike his son, he defeated Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein but refused to oust Hussein from Iraq or spread democracy to that nation.
President Barack Obama claimed to be a True Realist, but I have previously detailed his obvious inability to see the world as it actually is.
You will notice that President Ronald Reagan does not appear in my list of presidents so far. This is because it is not so easy to place him. I suspect that Sen. McConnell and Politico believe Reagan was a Wilsonian. Reagan certainly did talk a great deal about spreading democracy and capitalism.
However, during the Cold War, when the U.S. had definite national interests in fighting the spread of communism and Soviet power, it made sense to inspire the masses in the U.S. and internationally by using these (then) popular principles in speeches. President Nixon and HW Bush also did that. And President Eisenhower was renowned for his “Hidden Hand Presidency”, where he would disguise his real thoughts and actions with his language.
Further, Reagan had some Jacksonian tendencies as well – he frequently castigated the international elites for their weakness and unwillingness to stand strong for the interests of the U.S. For example, he fought against the international elites when they sought to return the Panama Canal to Panama.
Remember that this is all part of a continuum, which means that individual presidents can shift back and forth into categories, which, coupled with their willingness to misdirect with language that disguises their true intentions, makes it hard to place them, definitely.
Considering all of this, I am not convinced that Donald Trump is all that different in view from Ronald Reagan. Certainly, both were willing to assert American interests with kinetic actions. Both were willing to get involved in foreign entanglements by equipping and supporting foreign actors. So, neither is a Restrainer.
Trump does not seem to be a True Realist; neither does Reagan.
The only question is whether Reagan is more of a Jacksonian or a Wilsonian? I tend to believe he was more of a Jacksonian.
And one more thing. Although Mitch McConnell has long claimed to be a supporter of Ronald Reagan, and initially got elected on Reagan’s 1984 coattails, it is well-known that he was a moderate Republican who supported Gerald Ford in 1976 over Reagan. He was certainly supportive of George W. Bush in the 2000s.
So, is Mitch McConnell really a Reaganite/Jacksonian or a Wilsonian?
While I agree with Mitch McConnell about the dangers of the Isolationists, I believe he and Politico are strongly off base with the rest of their criticisms. President Trump is a Jacksonian, and that is a good thing. And Donald Trump doesn’t need any help from Mitch McConnell or Politico.