At least in foreign policy, the major party candidates have ignored the sentiments of the American people.
Despite the warmongering of Hillary Clinton’s record and Donald Trump’s rhetoric, a Pew survey found that “the public remains wary of U.S. international involvement.”
Americans aren’t moving to a non-interventionist or isolationist habit of mind, but they’re still opposed to more war and nationbuilding.
“While more Americans say the U.S. does too much (41 percent) than say it does too little (27 percent) to solve world problems, the share saying the United States does too much globally is 10 percentage points lower than three years ago (51 percent),” the survey noted.
Where someone stands on America solving world problems depends on their political party. Only 28 percent of Americans say the U.S. does the “right amount” in helping. Only 17 percent of Republicans and 23 percent of independents think so, but 42 percent of Democrats agree with American action.
“Americans have no appetite for the more aggressive foreign policy we are all but certain to get from a Clinton administration,” Daniel Larison wrote for The American Conservative.
He noted an interesting phenomenon: Trump supporters are the most averse to American action on a global scale. That could be interpreted as an aversion to immigration and international trade deals. Or it could be a desire for the United States to restrain its military aspirations.
Regardless, believing that Trump will restrain foreign entanglements is a hope that’s more projection than substance. With no political record and a penchant to contradict himself on policy positions, it’s difficult to believe his supporters won’t be disappointed with his results.
Aside from Clinton, however, the candidates with supporters averse to international meddling stayed in the campaign the longest. Supporters of Ted Cruz and Bernie Sanders thought the U.S. did too much globally, 48 percent and 42 percent of respondents said, respectively.
Americans have turned to a pre-World War II mindset. Overall, 57 percent of respondents said the United States should “deal with its own problems and let other countries deal with their own problems the best they can.”
That’s not an outright rejection of international action, but it’s a sign that domestic issues have taken priority. Millennials hold a similar mindset as well — foreign wars have made them wary of an interventionist president.
