The Trump era's illusion of stability

What happens when the world stops holding its breath?

President Trump.
(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Do you ever get the feeling the world is holding its breath?

When Barack Obama left office, the United States was embroiled in a number of ongoing conflicts. From the wars in Afghanistan and against ISIS and other Islamist terror groups, to the mostly frozen Korean conflict to the larger-scale geopolitical struggles with China, Russia, and Iran, the United States has numerous military and diplomatic commitments in a variety of theaters that could erupt into crisis and demand an American response. And of course the world is full of conflicts to which America is not a party, but which would inevitably draw America in, diplomatically if not militarily, if they were to escalate to full-scale war.

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Noah Millman

Noah Millman is a screenwriter and filmmaker, a political columnist and a critic. From 2012 through 2017 he was a senior editor and featured blogger at The American Conservative. His work has also appeared in The New York Times Book Review, Politico, USA Today, The New Republic, The Weekly Standard, Foreign Policy, Modern Age, First Things, and the Jewish Review of Books, among other publications. Noah lives in Brooklyn with his wife and son.