The DSR Network What Would Kissinger and Brzezinski Think of Trump?
Apr 16, 2025
Ed Luce, a Financial Times columnist and author specializing in US foreign policy, joins David Rothkopf to examine how historical figures like Kissinger and Brzezinski would assess Trump's unconventional foreign policy. They discuss the evolution of diplomacy and the importance of historical context in modern challenges. Luce highlights the implications of American exceptionalism, critiques current strategies toward China and Russia, and shares insights from his upcoming book, emphasizing the need for deeper intellectual engagement in politics.
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Complexity of Modern Geopolitics
- The Cold War was a bipolar ideological conflict making geopolitics somewhat more straightforward.
- Today's multipolar, technologically connected world is more complex and unstable for strategists.
Immigrant Roots Shaped Strategists
- Kissinger and Brzezinski were shaped by immigrant experiences amid geopolitical upheaval.
- Their sense of tragic impermanence influenced their differing strategic priorities: order vs. justice.
Loss of Impermanence Sense
- Post-Cold War generations lack the ingrained sense that great powers and regimes are fragile.
- This psychological shift challenges long-term strategic thinking in America today.