On this episode of The Hillsdale College Online Courses Podcast, Jeremiah Regan and professor emeritus of art Sam Knecht introduce the course "American Paintings."

Great artists perceive something that is difficult to capture and portray it with a beauty that makes it easier for us to grasp. These American paintings present the American character and make us proud to be Americans. This course explores inspiring portraits of statesmen, cherished images of common citizens, breathtaking landscapes of the American countryside, the hidden beauty of America’s city streets, and harrowing but fortifying glimpses of battle. American art is characterized by honesty. These artists attempt to balance a faithful replica of reality with a depiction of the ideal we seek. The color, light, and movement captured in brushstrokes on canvas provide a unique glimpse of the American character.

The American patriots depicted in these paintings, from our Founding Fathers through our more recent statesmen, inspire us to live up to the principles and promise of America.

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On this episode of The Hillsdale College Online Courses Podcast, Jeremiah and Juan discuss the long-term ramifications of the fall of the Soviet Union before introducing Michael Anton.

We often treat foreign policy as a mystery that can only be understood by an enlightened few who have committed their lives to understanding the complexities of international life. This view is dangerous because it encourages citizens to ignore a critical aspect of American political life that it’s our duty to understand. And it’s false because the basics of foreign policy are commonsense and a joy to learn. For the Founders, the basic premise of foreign policy is simple—we must make every decision with a view towards securing the equal, natural rights of American citizens. This understanding requires that America’s leaders remain accountable to the people, and it places essential limits on our interventions abroad. Yet, for over a century, this traditional understanding of American foreign policy has been challenged by new and more ambitious doctrines that argue for increased American involvement and leadership abroad.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, America was left as the sole great power on the world stage, which led many Americans to expect a return to noninterventionist policies. But the foreign policy establishment argued that America as the sole great power left in the world had a responsibility of leading in a new international order. The threat of global terrorism entrenched this new role.

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On this episode of The Hillsdale College Online Courses Podcast, Jeremiah and Juan discuss the long-term ramifications of the fall of the Soviet Union before introducing Michael Anton.

We often treat foreign policy as a mystery that can only be understood by an enlightened few who have committed their lives to understanding the complexities of international life. This view is dangerous because it encourages citizens to ignore a critical aspect of American political life that it’s our duty to understand. And it’s false because the basics of foreign policy are commonsense and a joy to learn. For the Founders, the basic premise of foreign policy is simple—we must make every decision with a view towards securing the equal, natural rights of American citizens. This understanding requires that America’s leaders remain accountable to the people, and it places essential limits on our interventions abroad. Yet, for over a century, this traditional understanding of American foreign policy has been challenged by new and more ambitious doctrines that argue for increased American involvement and leadership abroad.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, America was left as the sole great power on the world stage, which led many Americans to expect a return to noninterventionist policies. But the foreign policy establishment argued that America as the sole great power left in the world had a responsibility of leading in a new international order. The threat of global terrorism entrenched this new role.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of The Hillsdale College Online Courses Podcast, Jeremiah and Juan discuss the ever-present threat of nuclear annihilation before introducing Michael Anton.

We often treat foreign policy as a mystery that can only be understood by an enlightened few who have committed their lives to understanding the complexities of international life. This view is dangerous because it encourages citizens to ignore a critical aspect of American political life that it’s our duty to understand. And it’s false because the basics of foreign policy are commonsense and a joy to learn. For the Founders, the basic premise of foreign policy is simple—we must make every decision with a view towards securing the equal, natural rights of American citizens. This understanding requires that America’s leaders remain accountable to the people, and it places essential limits on our interventions abroad. Yet, for over a century, this traditional understanding of American foreign policy has been challenged by new and more ambitious doctrines that argue for increased American involvement and leadership abroad.

The rise of nuclear power and the doctrine of mutually assured destruction kept the Cold War from erupting into outright war between the great powers. The superior industrial and technological capacity of the United States enabled America to outlast the Soviet Union.

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On this episode of The Hillsdale College Online Courses Podcast, Jeremiah and Juan discuss the unique threat of international communism before introducing Michael Anton.

We often treat foreign policy as a mystery that can only be understood by an enlightened few who have committed their lives to understanding the complexities of international life. This view is dangerous because it encourages citizens to ignore a critical aspect of American political life that it’s our duty to understand. And it’s false because the basics of foreign policy are commonsense and a joy to learn. For the Founders, the basic premise of foreign policy is simple—we must make every decision with a view towards securing the equal, natural rights of American citizens. This understanding requires that America’s leaders remain accountable to the people, and it places essential limits on our interventions abroad. Yet, for over a century, this traditional understanding of American foreign policy has been challenged by new and more ambitious doctrines that argue for increased American involvement and leadership abroad.

After World War Two, Europe was weakened and America was the only power capable of standing against Soviet communism. We pursued a policy of containment and intervened in smaller nations to stop the spread of communism rather than directly confront the Soviet Union.

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On this episode of The Hillsdale College Online Courses Podcast, Jeremiah and Juan discuss the legacy of World War Two before introducing Michael Anton.

We often treat foreign policy as a mystery that can only be understood by an enlightened few who have committed their lives to understanding the complexities of international life. This view is dangerous because it encourages citizens to ignore a critical aspect of American political life that it’s our duty to understand. And it’s false because the basics of foreign policy are commonsense and a joy to learn. For the Founders, the basic premise of foreign policy is simple—we must make every decision with a view towards securing the equal, natural rights of American citizens. This understanding requires that America’s leaders remain accountable to the people, and it places essential limits on our interventions abroad. Yet, for over a century, this traditional understanding of American foreign policy has been challenged by new and more ambitious doctrines that argue for increased American involvement and leadership abroad.

America was officially neutral during the first two years of World War Two, but in many important ways our “neutrality” violated the nonintervention principles of the American Founders. The attack on Pearl Harbor led Americans to accept war. And with the rising Soviet threat at the end of the War, American public opinion accepted interventionist policies.

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On this episode of The Hillsdale College Online Courses Podcast, Jeremiah and Juan discuss American foreign policy in the wake of World War One before introducing Michael Anton.

We often treat foreign policy as a mystery that can only be understood by an enlightened few who have committed their lives to understanding the complexities of international life. This view is dangerous because it encourages citizens to ignore a critical aspect of American political life that it’s our duty to understand. And it’s false because the basics of foreign policy are commonsense and a joy to learn. For the Founders, the basic premise of foreign policy is simple—we must make every decision with a view towards securing the equal, natural rights of American citizens. This understanding requires that America’s leaders remain accountable to the people, and it places essential limits on our interventions abroad. Yet, for over a century, this traditional understanding of American foreign policy has been challenged by new and more ambitious doctrines that argue for increased American involvement and leadership abroad.

World War One marks the rise of the new progressive foreign policy among American elites who sought to spread American principles abroad and make the world safe for democracy. But the American public still largely opposed foreign interventions, and after the Great War, they elected presidents who promised to avoid foreign entanglements and return to a noninterventionist policy.

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On this episode of The Hillsdale College Online Courses Podcast, Jeremiah and Juan discuss the birth of American empire before introducing Michael Anton.

We often treat foreign policy as a mystery that can only be understood by an enlightened few who have committed their lives to understanding the complexities of international life. This view is dangerous because it encourages citizens to ignore a critical aspect of American political life that it’s our duty to understand. And it’s false because the basics of foreign policy are commonsense and a joy to learn. For the Founders, the basic premise of foreign policy is simple—we must make every decision with a view towards securing the equal, natural rights of American citizens. This understanding requires that America’s leaders remain accountable to the people, and it places essential limits on our interventions abroad. Yet, for over a century, this traditional understanding of American foreign policy has been challenged by new and more ambitious doctrines that argue for increased American involvement and leadership abroad.

In the Spanish-American War, America intervened in the internal affairs of a European colony in the Western Hemisphere. As a result of the war, America acquired territories that it ruled with no intention of admitting to statehood, fundamentally changing the nature of American foreign policy.

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