With the election of Trump, America's soft power has taken a big

The words of Joseph Stiglitz—“With the election of Trump, America's soft power has taken a big hit. The United States has moved from a position of leadership in the creation of a rules-based international system to a position of leadership in its destruction and the creation of a regime of global protectionism. The damage will be long-lasting.”—resound with the gravity of one who has seen the rise and fall of nations. In them lies both sorrow and warning: that a nation once revered for its ideals and moral example may, by the choices of its leaders, wound itself and the world. Stiglitz, an economist of renown, speaks not with the tongue of partisanship, but with the voice of history, reminding us that power without principle corrupts not only the present, but the legacy of generations to come.

To speak of soft power is to speak of influence rooted not in armies or wealth, but in respect, trust, and admiration. It is the invisible force that compels nations to follow, not by fear, but by inspiration. For decades, America’s leadership in the rules-based international system was its crown jewel: it championed institutions, treaties, and frameworks designed to prevent chaos and foster cooperation. This was not the power of the sword, but of example, a light to other nations. Yet Stiglitz laments that this light has dimmed, replaced by the shadows of protectionism and self-interest, a leadership not of creation, but of destruction.

History bears witness to such shifts. Once, Rome was admired for its laws and its roads, its promise of order in a fractured world. Yet when it turned inward, when it abandoned fairness and embraced exploitation, it lost the respect of the provinces and the loyalty of its allies. Rome’s might remained for a time, but its soft power—its ability to inspire unity—was gone, and with it, the seeds of decline were sown. Stiglitz warns that America, by withdrawing from cooperative leadership, risks a similar fate: to remain strong in arms, but weak in influence, respected no longer but feared or resented.

The rise of global protectionism is more than an economic shift; it is a retreat from the vision of a world bound by shared rules. Protectionism walls off nations, fosters rivalry, and ignites the old temptations of suspicion and greed. Where once doors were opened, barriers are raised; where once trade built bridges, tariffs dig trenches. This reversal is not merely policy but philosophy, a turning away from the idea that humanity flourishes together, toward the belief that each nation must grasp selfishly for itself. Stiglitz calls it a wound whose damage will be long-lasting, for rebuilding trust among nations, once broken, is a task not of years, but of generations.

Consider the Marshall Plan after the Second World War, when America invested in the recovery of Europe. This was not protectionism, but magnanimity. It secured allies, rebuilt economies, and laid the foundation for decades of prosperity and peace. It was an act of soft power unmatched, and its fruits were long and abundant. How different would history have been had America chosen instead to hoard wealth, to close markets, to shrink into itself? Stiglitz reminds us that greatness comes not from isolation, but from generosity and vision.

The lesson is clear: leadership is not only the power to act, but the responsibility to guide. A nation that tears down the structures it once built dishonors its legacy and undermines its future. In our time, this lesson is not for America alone, but for all peoples: do not trade the wealth of cooperation for the poverty of division, nor the strength of shared rules for the fragility of selfish gain. For when trust among nations falters, conflict follows close behind.

So, O listener, take these words to heart. In your own life, in your community, in your nation, choose always the path of building, not breaking; of rules, not chaos; of trust, not fear. Remember that soft power—the ability to inspire, to uplift, to lead by example—is the greatest force of all, for it outlives armies and endures beyond walls. Let us then be builders of systems that serve all, lest we find ourselves architects of ruin. For as Stiglitz warns, destruction is swift, but the work of restoration is long—and the future will remember which path we chose.