Article
Introduction: American Power and Responsibility in a New Century
Ethics & International Affairs
(2000)
Abstract
Never before in its history has the United States enjoyed such a favorable strategic environment as it does today. There are few deadly enemies anywhere in sight. The U.S. military budget surpasses that of China, Russia, and the five Western European powers combined, and U.S. military capabilities are well ahead of those of any ally or potential adversary. America's booming economy and domestic social arrangements—with crime and unemployment down to the levels of thirty years ago—are a puzzle to those who, as recently as a decade ago, were predicting inexorable American decline. Such a surfeit of U.S. power and prestige, and the apparent absence of any significant obstacles to it, have prompted many to argue that this is a unique historic opportunity for the United States to fulfill the Wilsonian dream of remaking the world in America's image. Among conservatives, the argument has been made most forcefully by William Kristol and Robert Kagan of the Project for the New American Century; among liberals, by Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Tony Smith, whose essay follows.
Disciplines
Publication Date
March 1, 2000
DOI
10.1111/j.1747-7093.2000.tb00049.x
Citation Information
Alberto R. Coll, Introduction: American Power and Responsibility in a New Century, 14 Ethics & Int'l Aff. 3 (2000)