David Frum on a New Era of American Decline
Ronald Reagan, invoking the 17th-century Puritan John Winthrop, once compared America to “a shining city on a hill.” This image of visibility and power, my colleague David Frum writes in a new essay, “imposed extra moral responsibility on the city dwellers.” In the next Trump era, Frum argues, Reagan’s vision of America will disappear: “The hilltop will become a height from which to exercise arrogant control over those who occupy the lower slopes and valleys.”
I called Frum to chat about the Trump administration’s zero-sum view of the world during Donald Trump’s first term and what to expect from the president-elect’s approach to foreign relationships come January.
A Powerful Teacher
Isabel Fattal: You write that Trump’s version of “America First” is not exactly isolationist but instead predatory. How so?
David Frum: “America First” hearkens back to the 1940s, when it was the slogan about keeping America out of the Second World War. “America First” as a phrase is often associated with the idea of isolationism. But Trump is not an isolationist.
He is very keen on involvement with foreign countries. He has business in foreign countries. He collects all kinds of benefits from foreign countries, for himself and his family and his businesses. What he is interested in is a more predatory approach to foreign countries, where countries pay the United States for military protection, and where trade is organized in a way in which the United States wins and other countries lose.
Isabel: How might Trump use his relationships with foreign countries as a way to pay off the money he owes in civil penalties for defamation and fraud?
David Frum: Trump has about half a billion dollars in legal penalties over his head, and he has posted some bonds to meet those penalties. But if he loses his cases on appeal, he will have to pay. It isn’t that Trump doesn’t ultimately have the resources, but a lot of his resources are locked up in buildings that his family has owned for a long time and would be subject to high capital-gains taxes.
One of the things that Trump might do is look to foreign sources to help him with that problem. And a lot of people around the world with a lot of resources are eager to help him.
Isabel: You note in your piece that the Biden administration maintained most of the protectionist measures it inherited from Trump. Where do the past eight years leave America in its approach to global trade?
**David Fr
What specific actions by Trump does David Frum cite as evidence of a predatory approach to international relations?
**Isabel Fattal:** David, you write that Trump’s version of “America First” is not exactly isolationist but instead predatory. How so?
**David Frum:** Isabel, Trump’s “America First” isn’t about withdrawing from the world; it’s about dominating it. [1] He sees international relations as a zero-sum game, where America always has to win, even if it means bullying or exploiting other nations. Think of his tariffs, his threats to pull out of NATO, his embrace of authoritarian leaders – these aren’t the actions of a country seeking to isolate itself. They’re the actions of a country seeking to impose its will on others.
It’s a far cry from Reagan’s vision of America as a “shining city on a hill,” a beacon of hope and leadership. Trump sees America more like a predator perched atop a hill, looking down on the world with suspicion and a desire to control.
