How the US Shaped the World: 250 Years of Power and Choices

The United States declared independence from Britain on July 4, 1776 — 250 years ago. Since then, the country has grown into one of the most powerful nations on Earth. But how the US deals with other countries has changed a lot over those 250 years. Researchers and political scientists have studied these changes and found some surprising trends.

When the founders wrote the Declaration of Independence, they said all people have the right to 'Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.' US leaders have long claimed that protecting democracy and human rights guide the country's foreign policy. Foreign policy means how a country deals with other nations. But many Americans now wonder if the US has truly lived up to those founding ideas.

A 2024 survey found that 72% of Americans agreed that democracy in the US 'used to be a good example, but has not been in recent years.' That is nearly three out of every four Americans. This shows that doubts about the country's direction are widespread. It is one of the strongest signs yet that people are questioning America's role in the world.

One of the biggest shifts has been from diplomacy to military force. Diplomacy means using talks and agreements to solve problems between countries. Political scientists Monica Duffy Toft and Sidita Kushi found more than 500 US military actions in the past 250 years. That is a very large number, and it shows how often the US has chosen force over conversation.

Professor Kushi, who teaches at Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, explained why this shift happened. After the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, US leaders stopped believing they could reason with their enemies. 'If we cannot use diplomacy with our enemies, all we have is violence — all we have is the use of force,' Kushi said. At the same time, the military's budget grew bigger while the budget for diplomacy got smaller.

For most of American history, Latin America was the region where the US got involved most often. But in recent decades, the focus has moved to the Middle East, North Africa, and parts of Africa. Kushi says this shift is partly because of the 'war on terror' that began after 9/11. It is also because the US became the world's strongest military power after the Cold War ended.

The goals of US military actions have also changed over time. In the 1990s, the US often stepped in to stop terrible human rights disasters, like in Somalia and the Balkans. Since 2001, one major goal has been to build up or remove foreign governments. These are very different goals from the past, when protecting American business interests was the top reason for military action.

The US also tried to protect its economic interests through diplomacy. From the 1960s through the 1980s, the US signed many trade treaties with other countries. Professor Calvin Thrall of Columbia University says diplomats are very good at helping American businesses sell products and settle disputes abroad. However, the number of new US treaties has dropped since the 1980s.

The US has also pulled back from large deals that involve many countries at once. Instead, it has preferred one-on-one deals with single countries. In a one-on-one deal, the more powerful country usually sets the rules. Professor Thrall noted that President Trump has been more open than past leaders about saying US policy is driven by money, not values.

All of these changes have affected how the rest of the world sees the United States. A 2025 survey looked at 48 countries and found that America's image improved in only three of them. Polls inside the US also show falling confidence — only 38% of Americans are happy with the US's place in the world today, compared to 71% in 2002. As the nation marks 250 years, the gap between its founding ideals and its actions remains a powerful question for Americans and the world alike.