As we approach America’s 250th anniversary, there is much of which to be proud – laudable achievements that contributed to making our unique democracy live up to the aspirations of our founding fathers. Our system of government and our leaders have expanded freedom and opportunity for all citizens, and Americans of diverse backgrounds are united by our commitment to advance freedom and democracy around the world through values-based alliances and partnerships.
Senator John McCain often reminded us that “America’s greatest strength has always been its hopeful vision of human progress.” This vision and our network of values-based alliances and partnerships continue to be a source of unique strength for the United States, and the reason we will prevail over autocrats and continue to be a strong economic, political, and military power.
We, undeniably, find ourselves at one of the most dangerous points in American history. We face a global war, a World War III, which thankfully differs in scope and destruction from the last global war, but still contains the seeds of existential threats to the United States.
We, undeniably, find ourselves at one of the most dangerous points in American history.
China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran are working actively together in two geographic warfighting theaters in an attempt to destroy the international order the United States established at the end of World War II to ensure future stability and prevent world wars.
In Europe, Ukraine has been engaged in a war of aggression kicked off by Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 and ruthlessly escalated by the brutal human-rights crushing full-scale assault on Ukraine by Russian forces in 2022.
Iran provided Russia with critical drones and drone technology, North Korea provided ammunition and soldiers, and China has made the war possible with dual use technology – drone engines, computer chips – and the ramped up purchase of Russian oil, which provides important revenue to Moscow, but also places them in clear dependency status, including greater reliance on Chinese currency.
These autocratic states are directly challenging the United States, raising the specter of trade wars and potential expansion of the great power wars into the Asia-Pacific and elsewhere. These dynamics call for strong military deterrence, deft diplomacy, and clear bipartisan consensus on national security objectives. The potential for this exists in the U.S body politic, where there is broad agreement in Congress and among the American people that Russia is the disruptive aggressor in Europe and that China must be prevented from dominating the United States and from further curtailing freedom in Asia, including the potential annexation of Taiwan.
Meanwhile, the world continues to be buffeted by global trends. Changes in technology and the climate challenge the global economic system and governments are already in competition to determine who wins market share and first mover advantage. This is especially critical as we reach new levels of capability with Artificial Intelligence, machine learning, and quantum computing. We will want to ensure that democratic values govern the use of such technologies.
There is a crying need for a new America to lead the world into this next half century, to harness all that is good and productive in our citizens and to lift up all boats at home and on foreign shores.
The bridge to domestic health and international pre-eminence is science and education. Our freedom safeguards our scientific, intellectual, and spiritual curiosity. We must reinvest in the universities and research centers that made America pre-eminent in multiple fields including defense, space, biopharmaceuticals, and more. The United States still leads in biomedical innovation – though China is trying hard to take the lead, in part by gaining access to data that belongs to U.S. citizens. We can block China’s efforts now and there is every reason to expect greater leaps in genomics and medicine using America’s financial and human capital.
Meanwhile, we are on the cusp of an energy renaissance with advances in nuclear fusion and the development of small modular reactors. Investment in renewable energy will continue because it is necessary to diversify our energy resources in order to minimize extreme climate disruptions and hedge against turbulence in oil and gas supply, and because advances in AI require increasing amounts of energy to process data. America’s industrial success for the last 100 years has resulted from the ability of the private sector to harness public investment in science and education to drive innovation – to bring us to the moon and back, and even beyond.
AI can be harnessed in the United States to help us revamp our health care system, strengthen our economy, and bolster our military might. We must invest in defense, but do so wisely – it’s not how much, but how we invest. Warfare has changed and the defense industry will need to adapt. America must harness its innovative, competitive spirit to ensure prosperity for future generations.
Internationally, if we work more closely with our NATO alliance members, our Asian allies, Israel, and other partners around the world, we can outcompete and counterbalance China and other autocracies. As Senator McCain said, “we are citizens of the world’s greatest republic, a nation of ideals, not blood and soil.” The fact that we share these ideals and values makes our alliances durable and meaningful. Polls have demonstrated that the American people support a strong America that appears to be prevailing internationally. Americans want to be generous, so long as they believe there is a level playing field and that rule of law will ensure fairness and counter corruption.
The United States will overcome this dangerous point in American history and emerge even stronger in our next 250 years by strengthening our alliances, deepening our commitment to shared values, and harnessing the power of rapidly advancing technology. It will require leadership – turning power to a new, younger generation of builders and innovators, rebuilding community and a spirit of social service. There is a crying need for a new America to lead the world into this next half century, harness all that is good and productive in our citizens, and lift up all boats at home and on foreign shores.
Here, again, the words of John McCain ring true. “Do not despair of our present difficulties,” he wisely advised, “but believe always in the promise and greatness of America, because nothing is inevitable here. Americans never quit. We never surrender. We never hide from history. We make history.”
Evelyn N. Farkas, Ph.D. is Executive Director of the McCain Institute.