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

246 SPECIALPROVIDENCE

violentandanarchic.TheUnitedStatesmustbevigilant,stronglyarmed.
Ourdiplomacymustbecunning,forceful,andnomorescrupulousthan
anyothercountry's.Attimeswemustfightpreemptivewars.Thereis
absolutelynothingwrongwithsubvertingforeigngovernmentsorassas-
sinatingforeignleaderswhosebadintentionsareclear.Indeed,Jacksoni-
ansare morelikely totaxpoliticalleaders witha failure toemploy
vigorousmeasuresthantoworryaboutthenicetiesofinternationallaw.
OfallthemajorcurrentsinAmericansociety,Jacksonianshavetheleast
regardforinternationallawandinternationalpractice.IngeneralJackso-
niansprefertheruleofcustomtothewrittenlaw,andthatisastruein
theinternationalsphereasitisinpersonalrelationsathome.Jacksonians
believethatthereisanhonorcodeininternationallife,astherewasin
clanwarfareintheborderlandsofEngland,andthosewholivebythe
codewillbetreatedunderit.Butthosewhoviolatethecode,whocom-
mitterroristactsagainstinnocentciviliansinpeacetime,forexample,
forfeititsprotectionanddeservenomoreconsiderationthanrats.
ManystudentsofAmericanforeignpolicy,bothhereandabroad,dis-
missJacksoniansasignorantisolationists,butthismissesthecomplexity
oftheJacksonianworldview. Theirapproach towar is more closely
groundedinclassicalrealismthanmanyrecognize.J acksoniansdonot
believethattheUnitedStatesmusthaveanunambiguousmoralreason
forfighting.Infacttheytendtoseparatetheissuesofmoralityandwar
moreclearlythandomanymembersoftheforeignpolicyestablishment.
TheGulfWarwas a popularwar inJacksoniancircles because the
defenseofthenation'soilsupplystrucka chordwithJacksonianopinion.
Thatopinion,whichhasnotforgottentheoilshortagesandpricehikesof
the 1970s,clearlyconsidersstabilityoftheoilsupplya vitalnational
interest,anditispreparedtofighttodefendit.Thepropagandaabout
allegedIraqibarbarisminKuwaitdidnotinspireJacksonianstowar,
andneitherdidlegalisticargumentsaboutAmericanobligationsunder
theUNChartertodefenda memberstatefromaggression.Thoseare
argumentstoscrewWilsoniancouragetothestickingplace.Jacksonians
don'tcare.HadtherebeennoUNCharterandhadKuwaitbeeneven
morecorruptandrepressivethanitwas,Jacksonianopinionwouldstill
havesupportedtheGulfWar.Itwouldhavesupporteda full-scalewar
withIranoverthe 1980 hostagecrisis,anditwilltakeanequallyhawk-
ishstancetowardanyfuturethreattoperceivedAmericaninterestsin
thePersianGulfregion.
Intheabsenceofa clearlydefinedthreattothenationalinterest,Jack-