America is unique in being the first country to be founded upon a set of universal human principles, including liberty, self-determination, and the consent of the governed. According to the Declaration of Independence, free and independent states are justified by these universal principles in conducting foreign policy—“to levy war, conclude peace, and contract alliances.” And yet, the Declaration also emphasizes the role of practical wisdom—or prudence—in shaping or moderating a state’s pursuit and protection of these principles. Thus, although America is in many ways inseparable from its principles or values, its specific policies must always be constrained by considerations of power, geopolitics, alliances, and economics. As the Founders recognized, unless a country is continually aware of these two sets of considerations, it is doomed either to overextend itself in impractical endeavors or to lose sight of its truest interests, national identity, or political culture.

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