Why America First is a slogan that fits Trump

Jonathan Tobin writes at Commentary about Trump's foreign policy speech yesterday.

...even if we put it in its proper context as a pose rather than a declaration of policy, it is still worth spending a few minutes pondering the question of why a presidential candidate would embrace one of the most discredited foreign policy stances of the 20th century: America First.

As writers such as Bloomberg’s Eli Lake have pointed out, Trump’s embrace of the slogan of anti-Semitic isolationists that sought to keep America out of the war against Nazism is a curious piece of symbolism. As Lake also noted, given Trump’s support for Israel (when he’s not being neutral about its conflict with the Palestinians), the comparisons with Charles Lindbergh’s anti-Semitism are off base. Nevertheless, Trump’s willingness to trash NATO and appease Russia is reminiscent of the old isolationists. It also raises questions about the real estate mogul’s dealings with Russia as well as those of his new consigliere Paul Manafort.

Let’s also concede that there was merit to many of Trump’s criticisms of Obama on Iran and Israel. Nor can it be denied that many of the decisions of George W. Bush that he criticizes don’t hold up well to scrutiny, though Trump’s claims to have opposed the war in Iraq “for many years” are contradicted by the record and undermine his already non-existent credibility. But all of the deep dives into the contradictions in this disorganized and utterly superficial statement are missing the big picture. Trump doesn’t have a thought out foreign policy any more than he has well considered domestic stands. What he has are attitudes that go to our fears. That’s why, even if we strip away the worst of the isolationist baggage associated with America First, it is exactly the slogan that fits Trump.

Of course, every American president ought to put the country’s interest first. Even Barack Obama thinks he does that. The problem is that he believes it is in America’s best interest to both apologize for its exercise of power as well as to appease enemies and distance itself from friends (exactly what Trump seems willing to do with U.S. allies in Europe and the Pacific).

But America First resonates with a segment of the American public today for the same reason it did in 1940. At that time, Americans were afraid of the threats looming in the world. They were right to be afraid just as Americans today are right to be afraid of the threats from Islamist terror, Iran, China, and Russia.

But though Trump claims only he understands that America’s foreign policy thinking is outdated, the lessons of the 1940s are still relevant. America will never be safe if it shrugs its shoulders at dangers looming against its allies. Far from Trumpian unpredictability being a virtue, it is a grievous fault if it allows rivals and foes to think Americans have discarded the responsibilities that go with being the leader of the free world. When that happens, enemies strike. America First is correctly regarded as not merely a failure but an ideology that was completely discredited by events because the price of listening to those who appeal to such sentiments is always paid in suffering and blood. Others will pay first but inevitably Americans will also do the same. America Firsters forget that if America ceases to exercise the responsibilities that go with being the world leading democracy, it will be America that will be the loser, not just supposedly free loading allies or foes that can’t be appeased or ignored.

Trump may lack the knowledge to understand how many problems he would create where he ever to become president and act on his impulses. But he’s an expert at marketing and knows that this brand of xenophobic fear-mongering will, at least in this primary season, turn out enough votes to get him the Republican presidential nomination. Many of us will always long for a strong man who will tell us we needn’t worry about others or that we can make the world pay. Those who cry “America First,” while really meaning to hell with everyone else, will always draw a crowd no matter how self-contradictory such a stance may be. But they will always be as dangerously wrong as their predecessors.

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