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

TheFutureofAmericanForeignPolicy 331

andvaluesoftheAmericanpeopleinordertowintheirfirmandendur-

ingsupport-andtocreatepoliciesthatdeservethesacrificesthatpeople

maysomedayhavetomaketoseethattheyarecarriedout.

Envoi

Itwouldtakeusfar beyondthescopeofthisbooktoattemptto
describea nationalgrandstrategyfora post-ColdWarworld.Neverthe-
lessI believeloweittoreaders todeclaremypreferenceamong the
schools:Whichoneis bestsuitedtotaketheleadindefininga new
Americanforeignpolicy?
ThisishardertodonowthanitwaswhenI beganmyresearch.The
moreI havecometounderstandeachoftheschools,themoreI value
theircontributions,andthemoreI believethattheAmericanforeign
policysystemworksbestwhenalltheschoolsarestronglyandwisely
led.
Thereisnoschoolwhoseperspectiveswecanaffordtolose,butin
lookingatthetaskswenowface,itseemstomethatthevoiceoftheJef-
fersonianschoolistheonethatcurrentlymostneedstobeheard.
JeffersoniansbelievethatthegreatestdangerfacingtheUnitedStates
istheconsequencesofinternationaloverreaching.Wecanpressourhege-
monytoofar;wecaninsisttoohardthatourprinciples,whetherWilson-
ianidealsorHamiltoniancommercialvalues,beuniversalizedintothe
practiceofothercountries.Ourpowercangrowsogreat,andouruseof
itseemsounpredictabletoothers,thatinself-defensetherestofthe
worldcanunitetolimitourpowerandperhapstoundermineoursecu-
rity.Jeffersonianswouldratherthatourpowerremainwithinlimitsthat
weAmericanschooseforourselvesthantofinditonedayconfinedwithin
limitsthatotherschooseforus.
Potentially,Jeffersonianshavetheabilitytodeterminethestrategic
futureoftheUnitedStatesformanyyearstocome.Ontheotherhand,
theymaysinkintocontinuingmarginalizationandirrelevance.
Thekeyquestion will bewhethertheycanreplicate thekindof
strategicthinkingexemplifiedbyJohnQuincyAdamswhenheproposed
whatsubsequentlybecameknownastheMonroeDoctrine.Adamslooked
atthebroadrangeofgenuineAmericaninterestsandfoundtheleast
risky, mosteconomical,andmostdignifiedmethodofsecuringthem
undertheconditionsoftheday.ThecombinationofJeffersonianreluc-