 In a recent social media post, President Trump made the claim that the European Union was “formed for the primary purpose of ‘screwing’ the United States of America.” This is, like nearly every other historical claim Mr. Trump has made for more than a decade, a totally false statement. It is not a mis-statement, but rather an obvious lie intended to mislead, misrepresent, and confuse his ill-informed audience. What follows is a capsule history of the European Union, with special emphasis on the proactive and energetic role the United States played in establishing the EU. The internal politics of EU formation is fascinating and highly complex and worthy of study in its own right. The story recounted here is less about those intra-union dynamics than about the EU-US relationship.
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AuthorI am an editor and historian of US history, diplomacy, and international relations. Archives
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Why empire?This blog presents new scholarship on American empire, places the American experience in a broader and global imperial context, explores imperial habits throughout American society and culture, uncovers the imperial connections between the foreign and the domestic, and develops “empire” as a critical perspective.
At least two features in the American experience are clarified through the lens of American empire: First, we better understand persistent social inequities in a nation professing a fundamental commitment to equality. Second, even a cursory glance at American history makes plain the chronic violence at the center of US foreign policy, which frequently mounts or supports bloody military conflict abroad. Empire helps us recognize how and why the United States seems to be constantly at war--including often with itself--with all the foreign and domestic consequences thereof. |
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