338 AfterwordNews,forexample,thatnolinksbetweenSaddamHussein,Iraq,andtheter-
roristsofSeptember 11 couldbeestablisheddidnotdiminishtheHamiltonian
caseforoverthrowingtheIraqidictator.Whetherornothewasinvolvedinthe
attacksontheUnitedStates,SaddamHussein'ssupportforterrorismandhis
evident determinationtobuildweapons ofmass destructionposedserious
threatstowhatHamiltoniansseeasvitalnationalinterests.
Insummary,althoughtheattacksofSeptember 11 representeda newkind
ofwarfareanda newthreattoAmericansecurity,thesubsequentdebatesover
Americanforeignpolicyfellintopatternsasoldastherepublicitself.Asever,
nosingleschoolwasfullysatisfiedbyAmericanforeignpolicy,anda chorusof
criticismattendedeachsteptheBushadministrationtook.Jacksonianswant-
edfasterprogresstowardaninvasionofIraq,protestedwhattheysawas"moral
ambiguity"intheBushadministration'seffortstorestrainIsraelireactionsto
Palestiniansuicide bombers,and resentedthelimitsanddelays placedon
American action by the need to sustain key U;S. alliances inthe war.
Jeffersoniansfeltthattheadministrationresponsewastoofast,toofarreach-
ing,andtooindiscriminate.Wilsonianswereconcernedthattheadministra-
tionwasavoidingvital,necessarytaskslikenation-buildinginAfghanistan.
HamiltoniansfrettedthatrashJacksonianactionwouldalienatealliesand
complicatethealwaysdifficulttaskofpreservingtheU.S. positioninthe
MiddleEast.Yetdespiteorperhapsinpartbecauseofthiscreativetensionand
perpetualquarrel,intheopeningmonthsofthewartheBushadministration
astonishedtheskepticsasitoverthrewtheTalibangovernmentinAfghanistan,
dealtAI-Qaedaa seriesofdevastatingblows,strengthenedsecuritycooperation
withRussia,ensuredChina'scooperationinsomekeyfieldsand,despiterising
popularanti-Americanandanti-IsraelifeelinginEurope,heldtheWestern
alliancetogetherthroughthefirstphaseofthenewchallenge.
Thiswasnotyetvictory,butitcouldnotbecalledfailure.
Worldpowerdoesnotcomewitha guarantee.Greatpowersriseandfall.
Newtechnologies,newweapons,andnewideologieshaverepeatedlyover-
turnedexistingorders,bringingsmallpeoplesoutofobscurityintoempireand
sendinggreatempirescrashingdownintoruins.
TheeventsofSeptember11,2001, remindedAmericansthattheworld
remainsa dangerousand unpredictableplace. Thespecialprovidencethat
broughttheUnitedStatesthroughtheeighteenth,nineteenth,andtwentieth
centuriesmaybeneededmorethaneverinthetwenty-first.Forrunately,the
combinationofpatrioticunityandvigorousdebatewhichsprangupasthe
nationenteredthisstrangenewwarprovidesatleastsomeassurancethatthe
UnitedStateswillfaceitsnewchallengeswithallthestrengthsthathavemade
itsoformidableinthepast.