Special Providence_ American Foreign Policy and How It Changed World - Walter Russell Mead

TheSerpentandtheDove 129

assetsunderwartimeconditions.DespitethebesteffortsofLordKeynes,
theUnitedStatespickedtheimperialcarcassverycleanduringthewar,
socleanthatBritain-formorethana centurytherichestcountryinthe
world-hadtorationbasicfoodstuffsandheatingsuppliesintotheearly
1950s.Formorethana decadeBritishcitizenswereunabletoexchange
poundsfordollarsfreelyandinunlimitedquantities.Thanksinpartto
Americanpolicy,Britain'srecoveryfromvictoryinWorldWarIIwas
slowerandlessdramaticthantheGermanandJapaneserecoveriesfrom
defeat.
Thelossofmuchoftwocenturiesofforeigninvestmentinsixyearsof
warwasa staggeringblow.ThefatalblowwasthedeterminedAmerican
insistencethatBritainwouldhavetogiveuptherighttoconstructan
imperialpreferencesystemoftariffsafterthewar.Thiswastheopendoor
witha vengeance;Britainwouldhavethecostofgoverningitsincreas-
inglyrestlesscolonies,butitwouldbeunabletoderiveanybenefitfrom
its possessions. Moreover, withouta preferential system, it stoodno
chanceofintegratingthe "whitedominions"(Canada,NewZealand,
Australia)intoa widerWestminstersystem.Allthesecountriescould
anddidmovefromtheBritishintotheAmericanorbit.
Hamiltoniansfeltthat the United Stateshad ended its years in
Britain'sshadow.Havinglearnedeverythingourmotherhadtoteach,it
wastimetoputtheoldladyontheshelf.ThedayHamiltonianshad
lookedforwardtosincecolonialtimes-whentheislandempirewould
yield prideofplacetothe continent-hadarrived. Theend-world
order-remained thesame,butthe oldmeans weredispensedwith.
HenceforwardtheAmericanswouldbuilda worldorderontheirown,
relegatingBritaintothepositionofsidekick.
ThecooldeliberationwithwhichtheAmericanspickedthebonesof
theEmpireduringthewarwasa signalillustrationoftheinterplayof
serpentanddove.Noreptilianbraincouldhavedealtasunsentimentally
withanoldfriendas FranklinRooseveltandtheTreasuryDepartment
dealtwithChurchill'sgovernment.Ontheotherhand,theAmericans
dismantledtheBritishEmpirewithoutfightinga waragainstit,andin
factwhiledefendingitagainstother,muchmorebrutalenemies.Indeed,
the knowledgethatAmericansupremacy would bemoremoraland
easiertobearthanaGermanyokeplayeda majorroleintheBritishdeci-
siontorejectHitler'speaceoffersandtothroweverythingintoa struggle
tothedeath.Afterall,Britishthinkingwent,thegoaloftheAmericans
was nota German-orJapanese-styleempirebuta commonwealthof