The Debate of Change and Continuity in Trump’s Foreign Policy

Abstract

Trump's foreign policy outlook and rhetorical predispositions indicate that American foreign policy
has undergone significant changes in terms of substance. The arrival of Trump at the helm of affairs
had created a conventional perception of a gradual retreat by the United States from liberal
internationalism. The Trump administration relied heavily on Jacksonian foreign policy to seek
alternative ideas for reinterpreting the United States' role in the current international order. Such a
foreign policy pursuit resulted in the rise of A-moral transnationalism, an approach that called into
question several key pillars of US international engagement in order to gain short-term economic
gains. To that end, this article will examine theoretical and historical aspects of US foreign policy, as
well as policy practices implemented by the Trump administration during his four years in office, in
order to test claims of continuity or transformation in US foreign policy.