Peter Welch: The perils and promise of ‘America First’

This commentary is by Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt., who represents Vermont in the U.S. Senate.

As far back as the capture of Fort Ticonderoga in 1775, our small state has wielded outsized influence in the nation and the world. Former Vermont senator Warren Austin was the country’s first ambassador to the United Nations. My predecessor, Sen. Patrick Leahy, worked tirelessly to build relations with people and governments in other countries. In Washington and abroad, Leahy found ways to project a positive face of America.

His efforts not only helped improve the lives of countless people enduring poverty, injustice, conflict, and disease, but also enabled the U.S. to find ways to work together with governments that had previously been aligned with our adversaries. Vietnam is one example: Leahy worked to build trust and address some of the worst legacies of the Vietnam War, like cleaning up contamination from Agent Orange and helping tens of thousands of people injured by landmines and bombs.

Those and other war legacy programs continue today; they formed the foundation for U.S.-Vietnam reconciliation and our comprehensive strategic partnership. There are many other instances where our foreign aid has been a catalyst for closer relations and partnerships with governments around the world: efforts to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS, Ebola, and other infectious diseases; educational and cultural exchanges; the Peace Corps; programs to combat hunger and protect biodiversity and endangered species; and work to counter corruption, repression, and impunity.

These efforts required proactive, sustained engagement, cultivating relationships over many years with foreign officials and average citizens in those countries, on a bipartisan basis. This was Leahy’s vision of “America First.” He and his Senate colleagues understood that what happens beyond our borders directly affects us. To deal with climate change, terrorism, pandemics, and other threats, the U.S. needs allies and partners who share our goals.

President Trump’s new “America First” National Security Strategy is the opposite of what bipartisan leaders have spent decades working hard to achieve. In a mere 12 months, much of that work has been undone.

President Trump and Elon Musk dismantled our foreign aid programs practically overnight. Billions of dollars for those programs—which passed with bipartisan support—have been rescinded. This has life-and-death consequences for hundreds of millions of people who depend on U.S. aid.

Thousands of career Foreign Service officers and local employees at the State Department and our embassies have lost their jobs. They were our eyes and ears, providing objective analysis of evolving threats around the world and building relations with counterparts in foreign countries.

President Trump’s misguided policies extend far beyond U.S. aid. His national security strategy lampoons building alliances in defense of democracy and freedom, while lauding business deals with dictators like Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Saudi royal family.

He is trying to dominate weaker neighbors. His economic agenda hinges on reckless tariffs, which immediately led to a trade war. These tariffs not only amount to tax hikes for Americans and lost revenue for our farmers and businesses; they have also weakened our alliances and partnerships, including with our closest neighbors Canada and Mexico.

Today, these and many other countries no longer see the United States as a reliable partner and are seeking stronger trade and security ties with our adversaries, China and Russia.

Last November, 194 countries attended COP30, the United Nations climate conference in Brazil. The U.S., the world’s second-largest greenhouse gas emitter, was absent, along with two failed states, Afghanistan and Burma.

To President Trump, “America First” means mining for as much carbon-polluting coal, oil, and natural gas as possible, including on public lands. Meanwhile, China, the world’s largest carbon emitter, sent nearly 800 delegates to COP30, and it is the largest producer of renewable energy technology, including over 80% of the world’s solar manufacturing.

President Trump is turning over the keys to America’s future security to the fossil fuel companies and our global competitors.

And recently, with the unauthorized use of military force to capture Venezuela’s dictator Nicolas Maduro, the President has entangled the United States in a costly, open-ended nation-building venture in Venezuela that harks back to the days of 19th-century gunboat diplomacy.

A year ago, speaking of Greenland, he said, “One way or the other, we’re going to get it.” Last week, he warned, “We are going to do something on Greenland whether they like it or not. If we don’t do it the easy way, we’ll do it the hard way.”

The President’s foreign policy strategy is rooted in greed and bullying. It breeds resentment and anger, and over time, that will become a dangerous liability. We are already seeing the seeds of that, as one foreign leader after another looks for alternative markets and partners.

It may make an easy campaign slogan, but it is the American people who will struggle to pay the price for his ill-conceived, isolationist policies.

President Trump’s foreign policy might be more accurately summed up as “Trump First.” It is certainly not putting Americans first. Under this administration, our values, our credibility, and our reputation are under assault.

As Vermonters, we face a choice: pull the covers over our heads or renew a commitment to global leadership and engagement consistent with our ideals.

The United States must continue to set an example as a generous nation. We must continue to stand for democracy and freedom. Austin did this at the United Nations, and Leahy did this so effectively throughout his Senate career. They showed that diplomacy and cooperation are almost always better than conflict.

I am working to carry on their vision in the Senate. When we make that effort, we allow for the possibility of better outcomes for ourselves, for our country, and for people everywhere.
https://vtdigger.org/2026/01/23/peter-welch-the-perils-and-promise-of-america-first/