42 Time October 21–28, 2019
Nation
after almost two decades of a counterterrorism
strategy in the wake of 9/11. Both China and Rus-
sia are increasing their military capability, and
Trump— despite his seeming personal affinity for
Vladimir Putin—has been supportive of direct-
ing U.S. military readiness toward preparing for
potential conflicts with them.
Another clear element of the Trump strategy is
to push our allies to spend more on their defense,
thus reducing the burden on the U.S. This strategy
has produced an uptick in defense spending in Eu-
rope, although whether the NATO allies will in fact
meet their pledge to hit the goal of 2% of GDP re-
mains to be seen. Elsewhere, defense spending by
allies and partners is rising in Asia (driven mainly
by concerns about Chinese spending, particularly
on the part of Japan and Australia) and the Middle
East (where Iran’s bellicose behavior has had an
effect, especially on the Israelis).
Operationally, the Trump strategy appears toAs 2020 approaches,Trump will likelyseek to avoid a warSome time ago, a young
combat veteran I’ve been
mentoring for years sent
me a troubling email.
His unit was considering holding a significant ceremony at a property con-
trolled by President Trump’s company. Given the recent public concerns
about Air Force flight crews staying at a Trump hotel in the U.K., this young
officer felt the appearance of enriching the Commander in Chief ’s corporate
pockets with Department of Defense funding was wrong. That is correct.
But what is deeply disturbing is that he had to wrestle with these moral and
ethical questions regarding his chain of command. He should be concentrat-
ing on preparing for combat operations.
At the highest levels of the military, these same political concerns
are manifesting themselves in everything from hiding a Navy vessel, the
U.S.S. John S. McCain, for fear of offending the President, to the current con-
troversy over American military aid to Ukraine, which the President possi-
bly held up in an attempt to pressure the Ukrainian government into inves-
tigating a political rival. For our military, this kind of intrusion of domestic
politics into national security is concerning.
Trump’s relationship with the military is an odd mix. He was a cadet at
a military academy who then avoided combat service in Vietnam through a
controversial diagnosis of bone spurs. Counterintuitively, he enjoys a high
percentage of support within military ranks (especially among enlisted men).
His widely reported adulterous affairs and on-camera denials about paying
off porn stars are behaviors that would destroy any military career, but he
also seems to respect the military ethos deeply, always behaving very respect-
fully when around senior military officers. I was interviewed about a possible
Cabinet post in December 2016 at Trump Tower, and the then President-elect
was respectful and personable, despite the fact that I had been vetted for Vice
President by Hillary Clinton. And he peppered his Cabinet and closest advis-
ers with “my generals” —Kelly, Flynn, McMaster, Mattis, Kellogg— although
most of them have since been discarded in frustration.
He works military themes into his long campaign speeches, including
his support for big defense spending. He is clearly aware of the domestic
political advantage that wrapping himself in the banner of the military—
America’s most trusted institution—affords him. The President’s base gen-
erally reveres the military, and the loudest cheers at his rallies are often
for the armed forces. Also, he knows military votes matter with millions of
active-duty personnel, reservists and veterans who turn out for elections.
At the most bAsic level, the Trump strategic approach ensures a military
that is well funded and combat-ready. Under him the Pentagon produced
a reasonably effective National Defense Strategy. That strategy is notable
for its pivot to emphasizing an emerging era of great-power competition