When Donald Trump ordered the capture of Nicolás Maduro at the beginning of the year, some accused him of creating a smokescreen to cover up the published files of pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Perhaps that was the case, but it is becoming increasingly clear that, like many other US presidents before him, he has fallen into the legacy trap. In their second term, they stop looking at popularity polls and seek to write their own epitaph.
Foreign policy offers the possibility of achieving transcendent goals that allow them to guarantee their place in the history books. Ronald Reagan dedicated his second term to ending the Cold War with Mikhail Gorbachev; Bill Clinton became obsessed with a definitive peace agreement in the Middle East (Camp David, 2000); and Barack Obama sought to incorporate into his legacy the thaw with Cuba and the nuclear agreement with Iran.
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, one of the most influential hawks on Capitol Hill, recalled this week in an interview in Political How, shortly after Trump's 2024 victory, while playing golf, he told the then president-elect that if he succeeded in overthrowing the ayatollahs' regime, "it would be like the fall of the Berlin Wall."
Admiration for Reagan
Trump adores Reagan. Or, rather, the admiration he still inspires in many of his fellow citizens, and his narcissistic instincts lead him to want not only a "Reagan moment," but to surpass him. That's why he wants to portray himself as the leader who ended the theocracy in Iran and communism in Cuba.
The war against Iran, however, is a leap into the void. Trump campaigned as the "president of peace," and in his inaugural address, he assured everyone that he would measure his success not only by the battles he won, but by the wars he ended. And he added: "And perhaps most importantly: the ones we didn't start." Now he has dragged the United States into a conflict that seeks regime change, the very thing he promised to prevent. And he has done so without a clear strategy on how to achieve it and without any regard for the consequences.
Their gamble carries risks not only for Iran and regional stability, but also internal ones. Americans still vividly remember the endless wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and they do not look favorably upon the operation. In fact, a majority of citizens, although still slim, oppose the intervention; a rejection that will predictably grow as the conflict drags on.
The Republicans and even the MAGA bases, which had freed theAmerica first As an emblem of isolationism, they have closed ranks with Trump. Only a few influential voices on the right have openly criticized him, though without causing widespread discontent. But while Trump is mired in war, voters are increasingly worried about inflation and the economy: gasoline, their only respite, is now rising, and the job market is beginning to falter; Friday's report was a reality check—the country lost 96,000 jobs in February and unemployment rose to 4.4%. If the economy continues to worsen and the war drags on, the November midterm elections will be devastating for his party. Republicans currently hold a majority in both houses, but they could very well lose the House, and the Senate is increasingly up for grabs. The outcome of these elections will determine whether Trump's agenda can be implemented or whether a potential Democratic majority will have the strength to rein him in. If he loses Congress, he will have no room to maneuver in the legislative arena, and we will most likely see a president even more entrenched in foreign policy and his legacy.
