U.S. President Donald Trump's inability to think strategically is undermining long-standing relationships, upending the global order and accelerating the decline of his country's global influence — or so the increasingly popular wisdom goes. But this assessment is not nearly as obvious as its proponents — especially political adversaries and critics in the mainstream U.S. media — claim.
America's relative decline was a hot topic long before Trump took office. The process began when the United States, emboldened by its emergence from the Cold War as the world's sole superpower, started to overextend itself significantly by enlarging its military footprint and ramping up its global economic and security commitments.
America's "imperial overreach" was first identified during President Ronald Reagan's administration, which oversaw a frenetic expansion of military spending. It reached crisis levels with the 2003 U.S.-led invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq under President George W. Bush — a watershed moment that caused irreparable damage to America's international standing.