“Make
America Great Again.” President Trump chose these words as his campaign slogan.
Emblazoned across signs, bumper stickers, and hats this catchphrase helped
propel him to the Republican candidacy and the White House. Never one to be
encumbered by details or facts, President Trump provided few specifics on how
he planned to make America great again. He frequently said it would be a
beautiful thing, a wondrous thing, lovely to behold. Now a few short weeks into
his tenure, President Trump remains a man unfettered by truths and one who
eschews attention to detail; historical or present day. Yet through his
actions, particularly his budget proposals, a clear picture of his vision of
American greatness is emerging.
What
does it mean for a nation to be “great?” We use words rather casually; which is
quite unfortunate as such casualness erodes accuracy. As an English teacher I
often toss my students a dictionary, instructing them to look up the word they
are unsure about. At first they recoiled at leafing through a dictionary, now
they enjoy the task, knowing they will consume a few minutes of class-time, but
more importantly, they will pin down the exact meaning of a word. Among the
definitions of great you will find, wonderful; first-rate, very good, being
such in an extreme or notable degree, notable, remarkable, exceptionally
outstanding, and important, and highly significant or consequential. Great is a
superlative word, indicating an exceptional level or quality. Something that
sets the object described apart as unusual or somehow unique. The use of the
term great specifies an uncommon level of attainment. Somehow the object
described is far above, or below, normal. So what makes a nation great? What
sets it apart in the community of nations that inhabit the globe? How do we differentiate
between the best and the also rans?
I
would submit that great nations display the following characteristics; an
unswerving devotion to human rights, a careful husbanding and development of
resources human and natural, an ability to take the longer view diplomatically
and sacrifice short term gain for the long term growth and stability of its
international neighbors, and the conviction of and willingness to work and
sacrifice to protect and invest in the weakest members of its society. These principles
form the bedrock of national greatness. Ultimately great nations nurture and
develop human potential; especially that of the weaker and disadvantaged.
Lessor nations focus on the lessor goals of prosperity, power, and prestige.
Forced by the function of budgetary recommendation, President Trump revealed
his image of a great nation.
President
Trump’s budget focuses on growing the size of our military. Almost everything
else shrinks as he and his advisors swing the axe of fiscal discipline. But it is
not really an act of fiscal discipline. It discloses his priorities, those
things he thinks worthwhile. The President and his cabinet believe that our
greatness rests in tanks, fighter-jets, aircraft carriers, submarines, drones,
missiles, bombs, and various branches of shadowy Special Forces. They couch
greatness in terms of power-projection and the unspoken, but loudly shouted,
threat of, “Do what we want, or we will destroy you.” This is the language of
the bully, the tyrant, the abuser. Currently our military budget is larger than
the next ten largest combined.1 We have more aircraft carriers than the
rest of the world combined.1 Despite spending almost 4% of our GDP
on a military behemoth, we now plan on increasing it.2 All of this
in the face of a non-existential threat. I say this as a veteran of
twenty-seven years and multiple combat deployments; one who understands and
believes in the necessity of a well-trained military. I remember and
participated in the Cold War. I know how the insane calculus of Mutually
Assured Destruction (MAD) works. Today we must ask, who do we plan on using
this giant stick against? What threat requires such aggressive brandishing? There
are threats out there; North Korea for instance, but our current abilities far
outstrip theirs. Our devotion to developing a massive military capability
encourages other nations to do the same. We lead the world community in the
senseless practice of consuming precious resources to feed the
industrial-military-complex. Instead of working toward peaceful solutions we
loudly proclaim our trust and dependence upon armed might. And we do so at
great cost to our own prosperity and posterity.
Looking
at the President’s budget proposal we see a long list of budgetary items that
we will no longer fund either at current levels or in some cases at all. The
State Department faces a significant curtailment of resources. The Republican
party which loudly and at great length criticized President Obama for failure
in Benghazi now stands ready to reduce allocations to the State Department; allocations
which might prevent a recurrence of that particular form of tragedy. We will no
longer appropriately support the very department charged with avoiding the war
we so fear. Other programs, such as the EPA, designed to protect the
environment from which we reap vast abundance will no longer be able to complete
their assigned mission. We stand ready to destroy the very blessing which
sustains our prosperity. This budget exacts a human toll as well.
The
program which supports Meals On Wheels may very well disappear. Evidently we
can no longer afford to feed the impoverished elderly and shut-ins in our
country. In setting aside this program we turn our backs on those who labored
to build the foundations of success on which we stand. The Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) undergo
draconian cuts. These programs help those less well-off and through stricter
controls long and short term abuse have been significantly reduced. Apparently
we can further expand our military, but we do not care to ensure that everyone
in our nation can eat. Some of the programs now facing curtailment are the ones
that help the weakest, most defenseless, in our society, the aged, infirm, and
young. We can find the resources to invest in new weapons technologies, but we
cannot invest in the hearts, minds, and souls of our own population.
Among
the programs slated for eradication are the National Endowment for the Arts and
the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. These programs, and others like them,
provide a window into the broader artistic community and world at large. Many
Americans were introduced to reading, writing, and arithmetic through such
programs as Sesame Street and Mister Rogers Neighborhood. Without governmental
support, American cultural life will suffer significantly. For the well-heeled,
replacement is an easy thing. The middle-class and poor may find replacement impossible.
President Trump’s budget seeks to close the window through which much of our
nation views beauty and culture. The NEA helps fund the next generation of
artists. Sometimes we may not like the art new artists produce. But, without
our support they will not get better. Whatever your opinion of modern art, in
the Presidents current proposal the arts suffer. While we can afford to field
the next generation of fighter-jets, we cannot afford to feed the bodies or
souls of our own population. White House Budget Director, Mick Mulvaney said, "Can
we really continue to ask a coal miner in West Virginia or a single mom in
Detroit to pay for these programs?" he continued, "The answer was no.
We can ask them to pay for defense and we will, but we can't ask them to
continue to pay for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting."3 I wonder how many of the coal miners or single
mothers he has personally spoken to?
As
Mr. Mulvaney said, “This is a hard-power budget.” But it is not a budget to make us a great
nation. It will make us the most powerful nation, perhaps most powerful bully,
in the world. If we wish to be great, we must embrace policies that make our
nation a place worthwhile; a place in which one enjoys living. We cannot be
proud of a nation which sends fleets around the world engaging in strong-arm
tactics to exert our will while people starve within our own borders. We cannot
be proud of a nation which enforces our desires by dropping bombs from drones
in other countries while we raise up a massive uneducated lower-class which has
no hope of climbing out. We cannot be proud of a nation where people die
preventable deaths simply because we’re too selfish and short-sighted to
develop a plan to provide universal health-care. It may be a hard-power budget,
but the ones who will suffer the most are our own citizens. I believe we are
better than this.
We
can educate and feed the poor. We can use our resources appropriately to ensure
a thriving industry, feed ourselves, and preserve great beauty for future
generations. We can defend ourselves and engage in long-term diplomacy that secures
our borders and helps other countries develop peaceably. We can develop a rich
artistic culture; one that feeds the soul as well as the body. All these things
we can do. We are the nation that went to the moon in a decade. We are the
nation that girded up our loins and defeated tyranny during WW II. We are the
nation that stood resolute during the Cold War and found our way out of MAD.
All these things we can do and be great.
And
for my friends who are Christians, Jesus laid out some interesting words on
this subject. In Matthew 20:20-28 (ESV), Jesus upbraids the apostles for their
lack of understanding regarding leadership. He reminds them that true greatness
comes through servanthood. It says, “25 But Jesus called them to him
and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and
their great ones exercise authority over them. 26 It shall not be so
among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 27
and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, 28 even as
the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a
ransom for many.” If we wish to be a great nation we must be a nation that
serves; each other and the rest of the world. I know that many of you will
remind me that His words do not apply to governments. Perhaps, but if we wish
to wrap ourselves in the mantle of a “Christian Nation,” we must structure our
government appropriately. We cannot have it both ways. At a minimum we must
agitate for caring for the weaker and less fortunate among us. We must embrace
this concept to be great. Otherwise, we’re just the biggest bully on the block.
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