Gaza remains a defining moral crisis reshaping how young progressives see the U.S. role in the world.
Democratic leadership faces a widening credibility gap on foreign policy and human rights because of the Israel-Hamas war.
A forward-looking foreign policy requires progressives to embrace—not retreat from—power.
The conversation opens with an uncomfortable truth: American leadership can’t survive on military reach alone, and Shadi’s warning that “we’re lacking even the pretense of morality” lands like a verdict on the current moment. The Washington Post columnist’s new book, The Case for American Power, isn’t an argument for force, but for responsibility — the idea that global stability collapses when we walk away from our own values.
Gaza becomes the flashpoint that exposes every contradiction, a crisis where the U.S. had leverage and chose not to use it, eroding trust not just abroad but among the very voters Democrats need to win back. The same disconnect shows up in Latin America and Eastern Europe, where inconsistency reads as indifference and unpredictability masquerades as strategy. Reclaiming American power starts with rebuilding moral clarity — not for symbolism, but because without it, the vacuum fills with actors who define power only by what they can take.
Tune in for the full discussion about America’s position on the global stage, now!
When Diplomacy Becomes Daycare: How Foreign Leaders Manage Trump | Strategy Session with Tom Nichols
Foreign leaders reduce American diplomacy to parade floats and palace tours, because it’s the only way to keep Trump from throwing a tantrum. Atlantic staff writer Tom Nichols calls it what it is — managing a small child — and Rick Wilson notes the price: MAGA’s politics of resentment are no longer confined to the U.S. The Reform Party in Britain now th…
