STRATEGIC

Introduction 3
that some allies have prospered under the U.S. security umbrella
while underinvesting in their own defense. 5 In a 2016 Gallup poll,
67 percent of those surveyed said it was important that the United
States be the number one military power in the world—though only
49 percent believed it to be so. 6
For six decades, a majority of the American public supported
active U.S. engagement in the world, with a sharp dip during and after
the Vietnam War, as shown in Figure 1.1. 7 The 9/11 attacks boosted
public support, but the Iraq war and its aftermath triggered a sharp
reversal. In 2013, more Americans than ever agreed with the statement
that the United States should “mind its own business internationally.”
Yet recent polling suggests that public opinion may be shifting again
toward a more activist role, in response to the ISIS threat. 8 The U.S.
public continues to rank the economy and terrorism as the two top
national priorities. It is unclear whether growing international threats
combined with full recovery from the Great Recession will translate
5 Public irritation over allied “free-riding” is bipartisan, and not restricted to the United
States. See, for example, James Joyner, “Europe’s Free Ride on the American-Defense Gravy
Train,” National Review Online, July 13, 2014. An Afghan blogger warned that “the U.S.
and its NATO allies spent much blood and treasure in Afghanistan, but China will reap the
economic benefits on a free ride” (Abdullah Sharif, “China’s Ambitions in Asia,” World Post,
November 13, 2015). Former Rep. Barney Frank complained in an article that “Paradoxically,
we continue to punish Germany and Japan for the horrors they inflicted on the world
decades ago by, in part, freeing their resources to be spent on their domestic well-being”
(Barney Frank, “It’s Time to Rearm Germany and Japan,” Politico, October 21, 2015).
6 “U.S. Position in the World,” Gallup, web page, February 3–7, 2016.
7 Gallup has documented high levels of distrust in the government and rising dissatisfaction
with the U.S. role in the world. “U.S. Position in the World,” 2016.
8 For example, in CNN/ORC polling, support for sending U.S. ground troops to fight
ISIS in Iraq or Syria rose from 38 percent in September 2014 to 48 percent in May 2016,
with 48 percent still opposed. CNN/ORC International, “CNN/ORC International Poll,”
December 6, 2015; CNN/ORC International, “CNN/ORC International Poll,” May 5,
2016. However, the April 2016 Pew Poll of 1,000 respondents found 46 percent in favor of
sending ground troops and 50 percent opposed. Respondents were sharply divided along
partisan lines, with 68 percent of Republicans favoring the use of ground troops and
65 percent of Democrats opposed. Pew Research Center, Public Uncertain, Divided Over
America’s Place in the World, Washington, D.C., May 5, 2016b.