Stephen Wertheim
@stephenwertheim.bsky.social
America in the world, past and present / Senior Fellow, American Statecraft Program, @carnegieendowment.org / Visiting Lecturer, Yale Law School / Historian and author of Tomorrow, the World: The Birth of U.S. Global Supremacy / Views my own, obviously
A pleasure to discuss realism — what it is, what it isn't, and what it has to do with Trump — with Linda Kinstler and @martindicaro.bsky.social.
Listen here through this ad-free gift link: historyasithappens.supercast.com/subscriber_v...
Listen here through this ad-free gift link: historyasithappens.supercast.com/subscriber_v...
History As It Happens
– What is Realism?
historyasithappens.supercast.com
January 28, 2026 at 8:14 PM
A pleasure to discuss realism — what it is, what it isn't, and what it has to do with Trump — with Linda Kinstler and @martindicaro.bsky.social.
Listen here through this ad-free gift link: historyasithappens.supercast.com/subscriber_v...
Listen here through this ad-free gift link: historyasithappens.supercast.com/subscriber_v...
Reposted by Stephen Wertheim
This says a lot about perception, mood and confidence (or lack thereof), so useful as a barometer despite the fact that it doesn’t correspond with reality.
Only 35% of Americans say the United States has more global power and influence than China does.
I am with the 19% who say the United States is more powerful than China — but that’s the least popular of the three options polled in the new @carnegieendowment.org / YouGov survey.
I am with the 19% who say the United States is more powerful than China — but that’s the least popular of the three options polled in the new @carnegieendowment.org / YouGov survey.
January 25, 2026 at 7:10 PM
This says a lot about perception, mood and confidence (or lack thereof), so useful as a barometer despite the fact that it doesn’t correspond with reality.
Only 35% of Americans say the United States has more global power and influence than China does.
I am with the 19% who say the United States is more powerful than China — but that’s the least popular of the three options polled in the new @carnegieendowment.org / YouGov survey.
I am with the 19% who say the United States is more powerful than China — but that’s the least popular of the three options polled in the new @carnegieendowment.org / YouGov survey.
January 25, 2026 at 7:07 PM
Only 35% of Americans say the United States has more global power and influence than China does.
I am with the 19% who say the United States is more powerful than China — but that’s the least popular of the three options polled in the new @carnegieendowment.org / YouGov survey.
I am with the 19% who say the United States is more powerful than China — but that’s the least popular of the three options polled in the new @carnegieendowment.org / YouGov survey.
President Biden said the United States was “the indispensable nation” that “holds the world together.”
But a large majority of Democrats say the United States is one of several powerful nations — not the single most powerful.
But a large majority of Democrats say the United States is one of several powerful nations — not the single most powerful.
January 25, 2026 at 7:04 PM
President Biden said the United States was “the indispensable nation” that “holds the world together.”
But a large majority of Democrats say the United States is one of several powerful nations — not the single most powerful.
But a large majority of Democrats say the United States is one of several powerful nations — not the single most powerful.
Another remarkable finding:
A solid majority of Americans — 62 percent — say their lives would not get worse if China surpassed the United States in global power and influence.
A solid majority of Americans — 62 percent — say their lives would not get worse if China surpassed the United States in global power and influence.
January 23, 2026 at 1:22 AM
Another remarkable finding:
A solid majority of Americans — 62 percent — say their lives would not get worse if China surpassed the United States in global power and influence.
A solid majority of Americans — 62 percent — say their lives would not get worse if China surpassed the United States in global power and influence.
This finding surprised me:
47% of Americans say China is already more powerful than the United States or will be within 5 years.
Only one-quarter think China will never overtake the United States.
47% of Americans say China is already more powerful than the United States or will be within 5 years.
Only one-quarter think China will never overtake the United States.
January 22, 2026 at 6:34 PM
This finding surprised me:
47% of Americans say China is already more powerful than the United States or will be within 5 years.
Only one-quarter think China will never overtake the United States.
47% of Americans say China is already more powerful than the United States or will be within 5 years.
Only one-quarter think China will never overtake the United States.
Trump has reclaimed America's traditional sphere of influence in the Western Hemisphere, but that does not mean he's willing to grant China or Russia spheres in their own regions.
Trump is asserting American power globally, not pulling the United States back to its own hemisphere.
Trump is asserting American power globally, not pulling the United States back to its own hemisphere.
January 22, 2026 at 4:08 PM
Trump has reclaimed America's traditional sphere of influence in the Western Hemisphere, but that does not mean he's willing to grant China or Russia spheres in their own regions.
Trump is asserting American power globally, not pulling the United States back to its own hemisphere.
Trump is asserting American power globally, not pulling the United States back to its own hemisphere.
Trump has never been an isolationist; he wants to take things from the world, not withdraw from it. Nor does Trump make careful calculations of costs and benefits. He has always been a showman more than a businessman, and as president, he is guided above all by the performance of power.
January 22, 2026 at 3:00 PM
Trump has never been an isolationist; he wants to take things from the world, not withdraw from it. Nor does Trump make careful calculations of costs and benefits. He has always been a showman more than a businessman, and as president, he is guided above all by the performance of power.
Q: As President Donald Trump approaches the first anniversary of his inauguration, if you were to choose a single word to characterize the defining feature of his foreign policy over the past year, what would it be?
Me: Thuggish. Extortionate. Frenzied. Myopic.
Me: Thuggish. Extortionate. Frenzied. Myopic.
January 21, 2026 at 6:33 PM
Q: As President Donald Trump approaches the first anniversary of his inauguration, if you were to choose a single word to characterize the defining feature of his foreign policy over the past year, what would it be?
Me: Thuggish. Extortionate. Frenzied. Myopic.
Me: Thuggish. Extortionate. Frenzied. Myopic.
Reposted by Stephen Wertheim
▶️ Kennan Conversations: Maduro’s Fall and Russia’s Response
A timely discussion on Venezuela, U.S. foreign policy, and Russia’s global posture with @hannanotte.bsky.social and @stephenwertheim.bsky.social moderated by Michael Kimmage.
Watch the full recording on YouTube.
youtu.be/sF6aU2UTPDs
A timely discussion on Venezuela, U.S. foreign policy, and Russia’s global posture with @hannanotte.bsky.social and @stephenwertheim.bsky.social moderated by Michael Kimmage.
Watch the full recording on YouTube.
youtu.be/sF6aU2UTPDs
Maduro's Fall and Russia's Response with Hannah Notte and Stephen Wertheim
YouTube video by The Kennan Institute
youtu.be
January 7, 2026 at 7:23 PM
▶️ Kennan Conversations: Maduro’s Fall and Russia’s Response
A timely discussion on Venezuela, U.S. foreign policy, and Russia’s global posture with @hannanotte.bsky.social and @stephenwertheim.bsky.social moderated by Michael Kimmage.
Watch the full recording on YouTube.
youtu.be/sF6aU2UTPDs
A timely discussion on Venezuela, U.S. foreign policy, and Russia’s global posture with @hannanotte.bsky.social and @stephenwertheim.bsky.social moderated by Michael Kimmage.
Watch the full recording on YouTube.
youtu.be/sF6aU2UTPDs
Reposted by Stephen Wertheim
💭 Military force is not only about action, but also about signaling.
In this segment from Kennan Conversations, @stephenwertheim.bsky.social reflects on how Donald Trump’s actions in Venezuela suggest increasing confidence in the use of force as a political tool.
In this segment from Kennan Conversations, @stephenwertheim.bsky.social reflects on how Donald Trump’s actions in Venezuela suggest increasing confidence in the use of force as a political tool.
January 9, 2026 at 3:57 PM
💭 Military force is not only about action, but also about signaling.
In this segment from Kennan Conversations, @stephenwertheim.bsky.social reflects on how Donald Trump’s actions in Venezuela suggest increasing confidence in the use of force as a political tool.
In this segment from Kennan Conversations, @stephenwertheim.bsky.social reflects on how Donald Trump’s actions in Venezuela suggest increasing confidence in the use of force as a political tool.
Reposted by Stephen Wertheim
🌎 Power does not disappear. It shifts.
In this soundbite from Kennan Conversations, @stephenwertheim.bsky.social reflects on why perceived losses overseas may be pushing the United States to reassert influence closer to home, and what that means for the global balance of power.
In this soundbite from Kennan Conversations, @stephenwertheim.bsky.social reflects on why perceived losses overseas may be pushing the United States to reassert influence closer to home, and what that means for the global balance of power.
January 13, 2026 at 4:33 PM
🌎 Power does not disappear. It shifts.
In this soundbite from Kennan Conversations, @stephenwertheim.bsky.social reflects on why perceived losses overseas may be pushing the United States to reassert influence closer to home, and what that means for the global balance of power.
In this soundbite from Kennan Conversations, @stephenwertheim.bsky.social reflects on why perceived losses overseas may be pushing the United States to reassert influence closer to home, and what that means for the global balance of power.
Told NYT: “Trump has brought a kind of war mentality into our civic life. That makes our domestic politics resemble what realists say that international politics is like—a situation of anarchy where the only real way to check a powerful actor who wants to do you harm is to build up your own power.”
#Trump & Co. claim to be ‘realists” who understand how power works in world politics In this NYT piece, Linda Kinstler talks to realist scholars (including yours truly) who explain what Trump and his minions get wrong. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/09/m...
The Theory That Gives Trump a Blank Check for Aggression
www.nytimes.com
January 10, 2026 at 5:16 PM
Told NYT: “Trump has brought a kind of war mentality into our civic life. That makes our domestic politics resemble what realists say that international politics is like—a situation of anarchy where the only real way to check a powerful actor who wants to do you harm is to build up your own power.”
Reposted by Stephen Wertheim
Stephen Wertheim: "Today, Trump's target was Caracas. What tomorrow?"
Today, Trump’s target was Caracas. What tomorrow? | Stephen Wertheim
He took office promising to annex Greenland and take back the Panama Canal. Now that he has ousted Maduro, other countries could be next
www.theguardian.com
January 5, 2026 at 1:34 PM
Stephen Wertheim: "Today, Trump's target was Caracas. What tomorrow?"
Reposted by Stephen Wertheim
💭 Kennan Conversations: Maduro’s Fall and Russia’s Response
Hanna Notte and Stephen Wertheim discuss U.S. intervention in Venezuela and the implications for Russia’s global foreign policy and the emerging international order.
Moderated by Michael Kimmage
RSVP Now:
zoom.us/webinar/regi...
Hanna Notte and Stephen Wertheim discuss U.S. intervention in Venezuela and the implications for Russia’s global foreign policy and the emerging international order.
Moderated by Michael Kimmage
RSVP Now:
zoom.us/webinar/regi...
January 5, 2026 at 9:12 PM
💭 Kennan Conversations: Maduro’s Fall and Russia’s Response
Hanna Notte and Stephen Wertheim discuss U.S. intervention in Venezuela and the implications for Russia’s global foreign policy and the emerging international order.
Moderated by Michael Kimmage
RSVP Now:
zoom.us/webinar/regi...
Hanna Notte and Stephen Wertheim discuss U.S. intervention in Venezuela and the implications for Russia’s global foreign policy and the emerging international order.
Moderated by Michael Kimmage
RSVP Now:
zoom.us/webinar/regi...
I joined @ianmastersmedia.bsky.social to discuss Trump's strike on Venezuela and his designs on Greenland: soundcloud.com/user-8304426...
January 6, 2026 - Spencer Sunshine | Miguel Tinker Salas | Stephen Wertheim
Republicans Try to Bury the Truth on the Anniversary of January 6 | Trump Has Already Made Life More Miserable For Venezuelan and There in More Misery to Come | Trump and Miller Espouse Imperialism as
soundcloud.com
January 6, 2026 at 10:51 PM
I joined @ianmastersmedia.bsky.social to discuss Trump's strike on Venezuela and his designs on Greenland: soundcloud.com/user-8304426...
Reposted by Stephen Wertheim
After months of repeated strikes, President Trump has managed to “decapitate” the Maduro regime. Now what?
@stephenwertheim.bsky.social on what the attacks in Venezuela could mean for the world, in @theguardian.com: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
@stephenwertheim.bsky.social on what the attacks in Venezuela could mean for the world, in @theguardian.com: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Today, Trump’s target was Caracas. What tomorrow? | Stephen Wertheim
He took office promising to annex Greenland and take back the Panama Canal. Now that he has ousted Maduro, other countries could be next
www.theguardian.com
January 5, 2026 at 3:01 PM
After months of repeated strikes, President Trump has managed to “decapitate” the Maduro regime. Now what?
@stephenwertheim.bsky.social on what the attacks in Venezuela could mean for the world, in @theguardian.com: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
@stephenwertheim.bsky.social on what the attacks in Venezuela could mean for the world, in @theguardian.com: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
“Despite Trump’s reputation as an isolationist, his record to date is taking an overtaxed military and finding new ways to spread it even thinner,” said Stephen Wertheim of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
www.wsj.com/politics/nat...
www.wsj.com/politics/nat...
A New Trump Game Plan Takes Shape: Strike and Coerce
The administration’s reliance on the surprise use of force in Venezuela and other countries highlights a new era of “gunboat diplomacy.”
www.wsj.com
January 5, 2026 at 1:10 PM
“Despite Trump’s reputation as an isolationist, his record to date is taking an overtaxed military and finding new ways to spread it even thinner,” said Stephen Wertheim of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
www.wsj.com/politics/nat...
www.wsj.com/politics/nat...
Reposted by Stephen Wertheim
Today, Trump’s target was Caracas. What tomorrow? | Stephen Wertheim
Today, Trump’s target was Caracas. What tomorrow? | Stephen Wertheim
He took office promising to annex Greenland and take back the Panama Canal. Now that he has ousted Maduro, other countries could be next
www.theguardian.com
January 4, 2026 at 12:49 PM
Today, Trump’s target was Caracas. What tomorrow? | Stephen Wertheim
Trump’s attack on Venezuela confirms what his semester of speedboat strikes in the Caribbean suggested: the United States is transmuting the now-exhausted war on terror into a war on so-called narco-terror.
January 4, 2026 at 2:03 PM
Trump’s attack on Venezuela confirms what his semester of speedboat strikes in the Caribbean suggested: the United States is transmuting the now-exhausted war on terror into a war on so-called narco-terror.
Reposted by Stephen Wertheim
I hope Congress and the Senate ropes the guy in. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Today, Trump’s target was Caracas. What tomorrow? | Stephen Wertheim
He took office promising to annex Greenland and take back the Panama Canal. Now that he has ousted Maduro, other countries could be next
www.theguardian.com
January 4, 2026 at 8:18 AM
I hope Congress and the Senate ropes the guy in. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Trump has thrown a country of 28 million people into uncertainty and tossed aside the most obvious, hard-won lesson of decades of U.S. foreign policy: regime-change wars are easy to start and hard to win, much less to turn into anything resembling genuine success. My thoughts in @theguardian.com:
Today, Trump’s target was Caracas. What tomorrow? | Stephen Wertheim
He took office promising to annex Greenland and take back the Panama Canal. Now that he has ousted Maduro, other countries could be next
www.theguardian.com
January 4, 2026 at 1:33 PM
Trump has thrown a country of 28 million people into uncertainty and tossed aside the most obvious, hard-won lesson of decades of U.S. foreign policy: regime-change wars are easy to start and hard to win, much less to turn into anything resembling genuine success. My thoughts in @theguardian.com:
I told @washingtonpost.com: "Trump’s brutal deportation policies, blatant election meddling, lawless boat strikes and creeping regime-change moves against Venezuela amount to a new, highly coercive and militarized approach to the Americas."
December 31, 2025 at 4:34 PM
I told @washingtonpost.com: "Trump’s brutal deportation policies, blatant election meddling, lawless boat strikes and creeping regime-change moves against Venezuela amount to a new, highly coercive and militarized approach to the Americas."
Reposted by Stephen Wertheim
MEST LÆSTE #5
Stephen Wertheim om USA’s fredsplan i Ukraine: Trods mangler kunne Kyiv have fået et strategisk flot udfald
www.raeson.dk/2025/stephen...
Stephen Wertheim om USA’s fredsplan i Ukraine: Trods mangler kunne Kyiv have fået et strategisk flot udfald
www.raeson.dk/2025/stephen...
Stephen Wertheim om USA’s fredsplan i Ukraine: Trods mangler kunne Kyiv have fået et strategisk flot udfald
”Det er underligt, at sikkerhedsgarantien til Ukraine blev kritiseret for at være så svag, at den svarede til kapitulation, når den i virkeligheden er så stærk, at jeg tvivler på, at den overhovedet e...
www.raeson.dk
December 19, 2025 at 12:13 PM
MEST LÆSTE #5
Stephen Wertheim om USA’s fredsplan i Ukraine: Trods mangler kunne Kyiv have fået et strategisk flot udfald
www.raeson.dk/2025/stephen...
Stephen Wertheim om USA’s fredsplan i Ukraine: Trods mangler kunne Kyiv have fået et strategisk flot udfald
www.raeson.dk/2025/stephen...
At its best, this administration says it wants strong, capable allies that can take over defense burdens from the United States, and that burden-shifting will serve the mutual interests of the United States and its allies. I support that.
December 19, 2025 at 1:47 PM
At its best, this administration says it wants strong, capable allies that can take over defense burdens from the United States, and that burden-shifting will serve the mutual interests of the United States and its allies. I support that.