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

TheRiseandRetreatoftheNewWorldOrder 291

missiledefensesystemonrelationswithalliesinAsiaandEurope,and
aboutthecollapseoftheentiremultilateralsystemofdisarmamentand
armscontrol.
Theyworried,butthereseemedpreciouslittletheycoulddo. Not
onlydidtheSenateatleasttemporarilyrejecttheComprehensiveTest
BanTreatyinthefallof1999,butprogresstowarddevelopmentofa
nationalmissiledefensesystemgroundonrelentlessly,despitethefailure
ofkeytests.
Wilsonianswerecomingupagainsta thornyconceptualproblem
withtheirownagenda.OntheonehandWilsonianshavealwaysbeen
powerfullydrawntotheideaofa supernationalauthority,a legalsystem
thatbindssovereignnationstoacceptitsdictates.Thisrequiresmore
thananinternationaljudicialsystem;itrequiresinternationalpolicemen
withtheabilitytoenforcethosejudicialdecrees.Itisanappealingidea,
andsomeWilsonianshavecomparedthissystemtotheAmericanfederal
system,inwhichtheindependentstatesjoinedtogethertocreatea com-
monfederalauthoritytokeepthepeace.
Politicallythis ideainspires deep,evenfanatical oppositionfrom
manyquarters. Whileinterestedininternationallawwithrespectto
commerce,andwhileacceptingtheusefulnessincertaincircumstances
ofinternationalagreementsonsubjectslikearmscontrol,Hamiltonians
remainviscerallyweddedtothesovereignpoweroftheUnitedStatesas
thefinalsafeguardforthepropertyandwell-beingofAmericancitizens.
Jacksoniansareevenmoredeeplycommittedtonationalsovereignty.Jef-
fersoniansfear,withsomereason,thatsincenocurrentlyfeasibleinterna-
tionalauthoritycanbetrulydemocratic,thenAmericansloseliberties
wheninternationalauthoritiesassumepowersoverAmericancourtsand
legislatures.
Onesolutiontothisproblemisfor theUnitedStatestoactasthe
arbiterandenforcerofinternationallaw.HamiltoniansandJacksonians
donotobjecttothisideainprinciple,butinpracticebothareunwilling
toseetheUnitedStatesactasvigorouslyorasimpartiallyassucha role
wouldrequire.Wilsoniansinmomentsoffrustrationwiththeweakness
orslothofinternationalinstitutionsoftencallontheU.S.governmentto
actastheenforcerofWilsonianorder.Butthetheorybehinditmakes
mostWilsoniansuncomfortable.AreWilsoniansworkingtobuildthe
empireoflawortheempireofAmerica?
Moreover,makingtheUnitedStatesthejudge,jury,andexecutioner
ofa globaljusticesystemstrikesmanyasa dangerousstep.NotonlyJef-