by James E. Fanell and Bradley A. Thayer
America First is America’s traditional foreign policy, and only President Trump offers the possibility of returning the United States to its traditional principles.
A major component of Americans’ decision-making as they go to the
2024 polls will be foreign policy. That is entirely appropriate, first,
because of the importance of what happens abroad to Americans’ lives.
Americans should remember Leon Trotsky’s purported observation that “you
might not be interested in war, but war might be interested in you.”
That is, the world is a dangerous place. There are many people who wish
to destroy America. They need to be met not by attempting to hide from
them or with rainbow flags, but with the force of a Mike Tyson punch to
the face. Second, this election provides Americans a choice between an
America First foreign policy or the disastrous alternative of President
Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’s administration. In this essay,
we offer our interpretation of an America First foreign policy and what
it means for Americans.
Based on the past three and a half years of performance, the
Biden-Harris regime has sustained a foreign policy, largely born from
the Obama administration, that ignores the existential threat posed by
the People’s Republic of China (PRC), undermines our allies like the
Philippines, distances itself from key partners like India and Taiwan,
fuels the Russo-Ukrainian war, punishes Israel, embraces the Islamic
Republic of Iran, and supports international organizations like the
World Health Organization (WHO) and international agreements like the
Paris Climate Agreement that advance the PRC’s interests. All of which
has undeniably damaged the sovereignty and national security of
Americans. In addition, there is the joint domestic-foreign policy issue
of America’s open borders. The Biden-Harris administration has imported
12 to 15 million people from around the world in almost four years, and
tens of millions more will certainly enter the U.S. if Harris is
elected.
At root, for many Americans, the Biden-Harris actions and policies
seem difficult to understand as they are such a break with traditional
American policies, culture, and history and are so deleterious to the
health and well-being of the American people. However, once you realize
that is precisely the point—that they are the most radical
Marxist-oriented administration in U.S. history—then their actions make
perfect sense. Their intent is to fundamentally transform the U.S. from
being a constitutional republic to a one-party state. Thus, their goal
is to replace and transition every established institution,
organization, and cultural norm. Theirs is a policy of America Last or
as it was called during the Obama era—leading from behind.
In contrast, an America First foreign policy does precisely the
opposite—it places the American people and their interests first.
America First recognizes that American power is essential for the
security of Americans in every respect. An America First policy
promotes, as American strategists did throughout American history, that
American hard power capabilities—the health of its economy, military,
and the society upon which both depend—are inextricably linked.
The vigor of the American economy means that the U.S. must master
both manufacturing and high technology. The strength of the military
means that the United States must possess an informed citizenry that
supports the military—many of whom want to serve in the services. It
means American industrial might to support the conventional and nuclear
missions of the United States military, making everything from ships and
tanks to computer chips and tritium, and conventional and nuclear
capabilities, are second to none. The well-being of society means that
Americans understand and are proud of their heritage, are patriotic and
honored to serve in the military, have prosperous and safe communities,
and have a sovereign United States that enforces its immigration laws.
America First recognizes the U.S. does have a profound, indeed,
existential enemy, the PRC. The PRC is using every means at its disposal
to destroy the U.S. from within, as well as the U.S. position in world
politics. From the Arctic to the South Pacific, and from its support of
Russia in the Ukraine war to its coercive measure to evict the
Philippines from its Exclusive Economic Zone and ever-increasing
military actions against Taiwan and Japan, key U.S. partners, the
aggression of the PRC against U.S. interests is quickening and
intensifying.
Tie that realization to the steps it takes to hollow out U.S.
communities through its trade practices, its chemical warfare against
Americans through fentanyl and other opioids, its interference in U.S.
elections, its lying about the origins and spread of COVID-19, lies that
it still maintains today, compels the realization that the PRC is
waging a multiple front, People’s War against the American people.
America First understands that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is
at war with America. Except for President Trump, the U.S. response has
been feckless because of the fatally flawed engagement policy pursued by
all presidents since the first Bush and Clinton administrations, and
that will be pursued with a vengeance by a Harris administration. Only
America First can consign the CCP to the dustbin of history as another
America First president, Ronald Reagan, did to the Soviet Union.
In the diplomatic realm, America First understands that the U.S. has a
tremendous number of exceptional allies who work with the U.S. to
cooperate on mutual economic and security threats and, in some cases, to
share intelligence. Great allies like Australia, Japan, and the United
Kingdom, among many others, have worked with the U.S. to address their
mutual threats and have contributed to the fight against the Soviet
Union or the PRC today. America First comprehends the value and
contribution of allies in the past or today. America First is, by
definition, not America Alone.
Our many allies have made tremendous sacrifices in war or have
assisted the U.S. in tangible and countless other ways. We see this
bravery in action today as the Philippines, a steadfast U.S. ally,
stands up to Beijing’s aggression. But America First also grasps that
the “free riding” problem is inherent in alliances and at the heart of
this issue. That is, if the most powerful alliance member, Uncle Sam, is
going to do it anyway, why should alliance members contribute? NATO
allies and others have tended to shirk their responsibilities regarding
defense spending and other contributions to the alliance.
But Uncle Sam is not Uncle Sucker. An America First foreign policy
labors to get allies to act like allies in every respect, including
defense spending, and to honor the letter and spirit of the alliance.
Ultimately, that is in the self-interest of the alliance members, who,
at the end of the day, depend upon the American extended deterrent for
their security. In turn, the American extended deterrent depends on the
support and willingness of the American people to honor its commitment
and incur its great costs.
America First is the return of American foreign policy to the
principles that won World War II and the Cold War. It is not a policy of
endless “whack-a-mole” operations around the world but instead offers a
strategy for victory over the evil of the CCP—the one adversary that
has both the will and capability to destroy America. An America First
foreign policy will ensure America’s friends are treated as friends and
America’s enemies are treated as enemies.
The Biden-Harris administration punished America’s friends and
rewarded America’s enemies. America First is America’s traditional
foreign policy, and only President Trump offers the possibility of
returning the United States to its traditional principles that resulted
in victory against Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and Soviet Russia.
America First principles made this country, to borrow from the U.S.
Marine Corps, no better friend and no worse enemy. Or, as was
exemplified by the Reagan Administration, America First rested on the
principle of peace through strength.
***
James E. Fanell and Bradley A. Thayer are authors of Embracing Communist China: America’s Greatest Strategic Failure. The views expressed are their own.
James E. Fanell and Bradley A. Thayer
Source: https://amgreatness.com/2024/09/22/an-america-first-foreign-policy/
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