When America leads from the moral high ground, it leads best. The United States is an imperfect country, but it need make no apologies for its imperfection. Others have a different moral compass than Americans. They do not share our country’s vision for human life. We think Russia, Iran, and China, for starters. They may prefer control, restriction, repression, and more over their own peoples. They have visions of imperialism and domination over others, and a willingness to utilize force and murder to achieve that domination. We expect American leaders to face down these philosophies of tyranny, oppression and domination. And that starts with moral leadership on the world stage. Which leads us to President Trump’s recent comments regarding Russia. And to Trump’s moral leadership.
A leader must persuade. To persuade he must have integrity; he must be trusted. Moral leadership requires a leader who can guide by example. A moral leader for the United States is someone who understands America’s core values, and who will represent them. He represents those values accurately and consistently. As the stoic Seneca put it, “noble example stirs us up to noble actions.” Can President Trump be a moral leader for the United States?
Trump’s Moral Leadership – It Starts With Recognizing That Words Matter
Russia’s adventures in the Ukraine are worrisome to those who believe in freedom and self-government. The subject provided President Trump with an opportunity to reassert America’s moral leadership. We will not jump into the Russia-Ukraine policy issue here. But in that context this past weekend Russian President Putin was described to President Trump as “a killer.” President Trump did not seize the moral moment. Instead, he replied, “we’ve got a lot of killers. You think our country’s so innocent?”
The President’s Russia-America equivalency is a disappointing and shocking moral surrender. It suggests that he does not yet appreciate the power of American moral leadership on the world stage. Moral leadership is a real power that holds real appeal to people all over the world. President Trump may be a pragmatist. But at the least he should realize that the mantle of moral leadership is a powerful tool in a pragmatist’s quiver. It should not be surrendered on a whim.
The words of a President of the United States matter. When he speaks, the entire nation speaks and the entire world listens. Each spoken word is a message. Each deserves a preconsidered calculation. The President must choose words carefully and with purpose. Beware of unguarded talk. Whether President Trump can guard his talk is uncertain. We fear he surrenders too much too easily. But as a negotiator he surely appreciates the power of words, and of silence. President Trump’s moral leadership, if he chooses to use it, can turn heads and hearts.
The United States is Not an Innocent – But It Must Still Be a Moral Leader
Of course the free world does not equate Russia’s morality with the United States’. The President is right. The United States is not “innocent.” But innocence, and purity of thought and action, are not prerequisites to moral belief and moral standing. If they were, all moral belief and standing would be surrendered. And the world would be left with just gremlins, goblins and demons in a cauldron of suspicion, hatred and war.
Senators Schumer and McConnell are also right. Unequivocally so. President Putin is a thug. He is a despot. He does have imperial ambitions and is willing to kill and destroy to achieve them. President Trump as moralist is wrong.
But President Trump as pragmatist may also be right. Perhaps Russia is the right strategic ally for the United States to combat Iran and to contain China. We had a little alliance with a Russian (Soviet) despot in World War II. FDR was right to overlook Stalin’s evil to ally with the Soviets. He based his choice on achieving a higher and greater purpose. Perhaps that type of choice with Putin is in America’s best interests? Perhaps this is what President Trump has in mind. We do not know.
Trump’s Moral Leadership – It Must be Infused By America’s Principles
President Trump’s acknowledgment of America’s moral failures, however, misses the point. The American people as a collective believe in these principles: liberty and justice for all, freedom, peace and the individual’s right to pursue happiness, among others. America’s actions will continue to fall short of its words, but that failure does not equal shame. We take responsibility when we fail, but we get back up, persevere, and try again. The world is full of others who would harm us. Sometimes, perhaps many times, we shape our choices because of who we confront. And sometimes those choices are fused by the pragmatic reality that large parts of the world are not quite ready for what we represent.
We expect our leaders to represent us by emphasizing those qualities that we most cherish. Moral leadership starts with words. It is followed by actions. We expect more from President Trump. Choose words carefully and with forethought, Mr. President. You have our sacred trust, and the blood, sweat and toil of all who preceded you. You have the sacred mantle of moral leadership for the United States. Please use it well.
