To secure these rights: Foreign policy and the principles of the American Founding

This dissertation will show that Founding-era statesmen had a coherent theory of foreign policy derived from the principles of the Declaration of Independence and influenced by social compact theory. The cornerstone of this theory is the right of a nation to defend itself, which flows from the natural rights of individuals to life, liberty, and property. That theory demands that government has an obligation to secure the natural rights of its citizens against foreign threats. The duty of securing one's own citizens is the highest moral obligation according to that theory, and the only absolute moral obligation. There is no absolute moral obligation to dedicate citizens' lives or property to the improvement or democratization of other peoples. Justice in foreign policy means that we respect the independence of other nations so long as their actions do not threaten our right to self-preservation and national security. A dissertation of this nature is relevant and important because scholarship throughout the twentieth century has tended to mischaracterize or disparage the foreign policy thought of the Founding era. In order to prove that Founding-era statesmen shared a principled approach to foreign policy, this dissertation will demonstrate that the founders shared a coherent and principled theory of government. We will also demonstrate how the founders modified the traditional Law of Nations, which they viewed as a re-articulation of social compact theory and the law of nature applied to nations. This dissertation will also show that the disagreements between Founding-era statesmen were less over principles and more over the practical implementation of them. To that end we will show that although they believed principles must guide foreign policy, the founders understood that prudence must ultimately dictate the specifics of any actions taken. We will also show how principles, combined with the need for prudence, formed the basis of the doctrines that guided American foreign policy well into the late nineteenth century, especially neutrality and limited intervention. The dissertation concludes with an analysis of how contemporary foreign policy either adheres to or rejects Founding principles and the understanding of Founding-era statesmen regarding the ends of foreign policy.