Today, Timothy Chu and Drew Endy draw lessons on utilizing science to advance the national interest from the life of President Trump’s uncle, Professor John Trump; Victor Davis Hanson charts the Jacksonian themes of the second Trump administration’s foreign policy; and David Henderson explains why the energy shock we’re experiencing today differs from that of the 1970s.
History of Science and Technology
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At The Washington Post, Research Fellow Timothy Chu and Senior Fellow Drew Endy revisit the 20th-century scientific and technological contributions of President Trump’s uncle, John Trump. “John, the younger brother of the president’s father, Fred, played a crucial role in the development of radar for D-Day and World War II,” Chu and Endy write. They add that the elder Trump later “contributed to the success of the US space program and pioneered methods relevant to semiconductor manufacturing.” The authors argue that as the nation again faces “global competition, technological disruption, and the need for scientific moon shots,” John Trump’s life provides constructive lessons. “When Americans listen to each other and work together, as John Trump did with soldiers, scientists and generals before D-Day, we can reach the greatest heights,” Chu and Endy write. Read more here.
US Foreign Policy
A new “Jacksonian” foreign policy reigns in the White House, Senior Fellow Victor Davis Hanson argues at Freedom Frequency. Hanson says President Trump is striving to avoid both “forever wars” and American hesitation on critical security matters. Continuing his multipart analysis of US security policy since the end of the Cold War, Hanson captures the profound changes that have resulted from Trump’s actions on the world stage. The military historian sees in Trump a core Jacksonian theme, tempered by both pragmatism and pre-emption. America, he argues, is ascendant in everything from technology and energy to influence; welcome changes have come to NATO; and even the epochal rivalry with China proceeds with American strength on display. Hanson concludes by warning the new Jacksonians to avoid hubris and overreach, exemplified by the histories of Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq. Read more here.
Economics of Energy
In his latest essay for Defining Ideas, Research Fellow David R. Henderson challenges popular misconceptions about how the global oil market works and explains why current disruptions don’t signal a return to the oil crises of the 1970s. Oil is fungible, he says, so it’s not possible for anyone to force producers to accept a lower price if another buyer is willing to pay more. For that reason, US energy dominance doesn’t guarantee a lower price for American consumers. And countries that are net oil importers—unlike the United States—will not be deprived of oil as long as they can pay the prevailing global market rate. Henderson reflects on the government actions of the 1970s in the struggle to control prices and supplies of gasoline in the United States, finding them wanting. The good news, Henderson concludes, is that today’s situation isn’t a rerun of the 1970s, regardless of how the war-driven disruptions play out. Read more here.
Economics, Politics, and History
In a special “mailbag” episode, Senior Fellows Niall Ferguson, John H. Cochrane, and H.R. McMaster answer audience questions. After a brief opening discussion of the “Schrödinger’s ceasefire” playing out in Iran, the GoodFellows dive into topics including: who today’s great leaders are; whether “the American experiment” is doomed, as some intellectuals posit; China’s move to gold from dollar-denominated securities; the futures of the European Union and the UK’s Reform movement; North Korea’s recent relative silence; the cooled-down rhetoric of climate change; whether our PhD-wielding historians bother with televised historical dramas; thoughts on the gentlemen scholars’ sartorial style (“buy [clothes] when you’re a graduate student and wear them until they fall apart”); plus managerial lessons to be drawn from the recent successes of Sir Niall’s beloved Arsenal football club. Watch or listen here.
British History
Royal biographer Hugo Vickers, author of more than 20 books, joins Secrets of Statecraft for a fascinating conversation about Queen Elizabeth II, King Charles III, and the hidden diplomatic power of monarchy. Drawing on decades of access, research, and personal experience, Vickers explains how Elizabeth II used restraint, duty, and quiet persuasion to help heal old wounds while remaining above politics. Vickers also shares remarkable stories about Prince Philip, Princess Diana, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Margaret Thatcher, and why the Netflix series The Crown is more fiction than fact. The conversation is a candid look at the personalities, crises, and statecraft that have shaped the modern royal family. Watch or listen here.
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