The New World Order and MAGA

February 15, 2024?

September 11, 2001 is a special – albeit traumatic – day in American history. ?But we have forgotten about an earlier September 11 and the impact that one had on the world both then and now. ?

On September 11, 1990, President George H. W. Bush gave a speech that for many Americans has been lost in the haze of history and pushed into the shadows by the events eleven years later. ?The symmetry of father and son and two 9/11’s are not just a quirk of history; they are cause and effect.?

In his 9/11 speech to a joint session of Congress, the older Bush all but declared war on Iraq. This speech is when the 41st president? first discussed the concept of the “New World Order.” According to President Bush, ?

“We stand today at a unique and extraordinary moment. The crisis in the Persian Gulf, as grave as it is, also offers a rare opportunity to move toward an historic period of cooperation. Out of these troubled times, our fifth objective -- a new world order -- can emerge: a new era -- freer from the threat of terror, stronger in the pursuit of justice, and more secure in the quest for peace. An era in which the nations of the world, East and West, North and South, can prosper and live in harmony.”?

To his credit, President George H. W. Bush’s response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait was a multinational affair that included the tacit support of Russia and China. And further to his credit, as soon as the job of restoring borders was done, we declared victory, stopped hostilities, set up more bases, but largely came home – until we were attacked on September 11, 2001.?

Father Bush’s vision of a New World Order seems like a distant dream today as wars in Europe, the Gaza Strip, and Sudan cause misery and strife for millions of people. The relationships that were developing with Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union under the leadership of Mikhail Gorbachev pointed to the possibility of peace in Europe and an end to the Cold War. China was still early enough in its own conversion to a mixed capitalist economy that it welcomed improved relationships with the West. Importantly, memories of the horrors of the Second World War were more than words in history books to the leaders of Russia, China, and the United States.?

It would take too many words to fully cover the reasons underlying why the world has strayed so far from promises of peace and stability offered by George H. W. Bush in 1990. ?One thing, however, is clear: ?the MAGA vision of America First is a destabilizing force that has damaged an already fractious international order. MAGA as a guide to international policy is dangerous. Recent remarks by former President Trump suggesting NATO is little more than a protection racket with him as the mob boss is deeply troubling.?

It is understandable why working-class White Americans have flocked to a man and a party that promises to put their interests above those of the internationalists. The world is a complicated and violent place, where sticking one's head in the ground seems reasonable, except that it is not a defense against global chaos. ?

Trump’s supporters have concluded that their material well-being will not improve, and more importantly, neither will their children’s. That’s why it is beyond baffling that they would choose a failed billionaire as their leader; and for some, he is even exalted as their savior. MAGA and America First have a policy to increase the wages of the growing ranks of the white nearly-poor. Their policy is to close the border. This “remedy” would theoretically raise their wages and standards of living. This would be true if you were a farm worker picking grapes in California, a laborer working in a meat-packing plant in the middle of Nebraska, or a dischwasher in a New York City restaurant. That said, MAGA economics is not going to solve the legitimate economic conditions facing the overwhelming majority of near-poor Trump supporters.?

I did not fully endorse George H. W. Bush’s New World Order back in 1990 largely because he did not include any systematic changes in how this new era would deal with the historical inequities facing the Global South caused by the Global North. His New World Order was a continuation of a Eurocentric view of global politics and business at the expense of anyone who did not have a seat at the proverbial table. But even with these shortcomings, the MAGA/America First approach is a retrogression to an era that was far more dangerous, while our ability to destroy the planet is far more lethal. ?

The world needs a new order, one based on truth, one based on justice, and one based on love.?