JD Vance went before the EU to declare that Europe no longer has shared values with the United States. He made it sound as if Europe has lost its way. It is the other way around. As America breaks with the West, it is fast becoming a state at odds with the values it once shared with its allies. “America First” has come to mean America alone, ethically disconnected from the rest of the world in a way that has never been seen in its 200+ years of history.
It is not simply a matter of whether or not Europe is willing to pay their fair share for defense. Actually, I agree. Although it is a stretch, a case can be made that there are unfair trade practices on the part of the EU. But, tariffs, defense spending, the right way to get a ceasefire in Ukraine–although all of these seem to be important–they are merely symptoms of a greater disease. They belie strong and strengthening fundamental differences. Vance is right. It’s about values.
It is a belief in open, fair, trade practices aimed at avoiding lose-lose economic scenarios. It is the concept of military cooperation for the common good. It is agreeing to not give Putin whatever he wants. It is understanding the need to defend a democracy. What it isn’t is a “What’s in it for me?” attitude toward stopping dictatorial aggression–the dangerous, idiotic, and morally bankrupt idea that we can just let dictators do as they please without consequence.
Meanwhile, at home, Robert F Kennedy Jr. has stopped funding for much of the virology research at the CDC, ending a commitment to combating infectious disease going back well over a century. The administration has defied the judicial branch by sending people to potentially live out their lives in a Salvadoran prison with no due process. It has defied the legislative branch by insisting that it has no obligation to spend emergency funds appropriated by congress, to the dismay of Democrats and at least one brave prominent Republican.
Rather than promoting a golden age, the Trump administration is taking America back in history to a time before the founding fathers. It is rejecting the enlightenment values that the West has come to take for granted, and undone 200 years of progress. There was a time before the concept of public health. The idea of checks and balances did not materialize by magic. Free trade was something revolutionaries fought for during the American revolution. When it comes to refugees, we understand Kant’s “universal hospitality” without thinking, even when we do not give it that name.
If there is one lesson in the current turmoil surrounding Trump, it is that we must not take history for granted. It took the hard work, dedication, and critical thinking of many people to create the world we know. Enlightenment is not a given, it is something we must protect and strive for in our everyday lives, or we can and will lose it.
Progressive Without Apology 