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

Tiger,Tiger,BurningBright 223

Arabia,Kuwait,Turkey,Somalia,Haiti,Bosnia,Sudan,Afghanistan,the
SouthChinaSea,Liberia,Macedonia,Albania,andYugoslavia.Thisisa
recordnoothercountrymatchesorevencomesclosetomatching.
Itisalsogenerallyconcededthat,withtheexceptionofa handful
ofeliteunitsintheBritishforcesanda fewothers,Americantroops
havea stronger"warriorculture"thantheircounterpartsinNATOand
Japan-inotherwords,than inthearmedforces ofotherdeveloped
countries.Indeed,ofalltheNATOcountriesnortha.ndwestofTurkey
andGreece,onlyGreatBritainhas anythingliketheAmerican"war
lobby"thatspringsupintimesofnationalcrisis,a politicalforcethat
undercertaincircumstancesdemandswar,supportstheuseofforce,and
urgespoliticalleaderstostopwastingtimewithnegotiations,sanctions,
andUNSecurityCouncilmeetingsinordertoattacktheenemywithall
possiblestrength.
WhyisitthatAmericanpublicopinionissometimessoquick,and
sometimessoslow,tosupportarmedinterventionabroad?Whatarethe
provocationsthatcanenergizepublicopinion(atleastsomeofit)for
war?How,ifatall,isthiswarlobbyrelatedtotheotherelementsof
Americanpublicopiniononissuesofforeignpolicy?Thekeytothat
warlikedisposition,andtootherimportantfeaturesofAmericanforeign
policy,isfoundinthefourthandlastofthegreatschools,the"Jackson-
ian school,"so namedhere in honoroftheseventhpresidentofthe
UnitedStates.

TheSchoolofAndrewJackson

ItisatributetothegeneralhistoricalamnesiaaboutAmericanpoli-

ticsbetweentheWarofr8r2andtheCivilWarthatAndrewJacksonis

notmorewidelycountedamongthegreatestofAmericanpresidents.

ThevictorintheBattleofNewOrleans-evenifittookplaceafterthe

formalendofthewar,perhapsthemostdecisivebattleintheshapingof

themodernworldbetweenTrafalgarandStalingrad-Jacksonlaidthe

foundationsofAmericanpoliticsformostofthenineteenthcentury,,and

his influenceis stillfelt today. With theever-readyhelp ofthewily

AlbanypoliticalbossMartinVanBuren,hetookAmericanpoliticsfrom

theeraofsilkstockingsintothatofthesmoke-filledroom;everypoliti-

calpartysincehispresidencyhasdrawnonthesymbolism,theinstitu-

tions,andtheinstrumentsofpowerthatJacksonpioneered.

Morethanthat,hebroughttheAmericanpeopleintothepolitical