To understand America’s future, Princeton must look to Britain

A slate of populist policy proposals has made its debut on the American political stage, including the first comprehensive protectionist tariff policy since the end of the Second World War, a withdrawal from America’s role as defender of the free world, and an intense campaign against immigrants who seek to start a new life in safety and prosperity.

Many Princeton students see these proposals as threats to the domestic and international order. They will upend the globalized trade regime that has reigned since the end of the Cold War. America will restart a retreat from the world stage that began in 2017, weakening alliances forged by the inferno of World War II. And this country, built off the backs of immigrants, will return to a policy of persecuting them. The future, it seems, is mired in uncertainty. But if you want the closest thing to clairvoyance you can get, we must look to our friends across the pond — the British.

The University, particularly the School of Public and International Affairs and the Department of History, must offer more substantial course offerings on modern Britain. The British story closely mirrors our own. Britain was once a superpower. It was once the wealthiest country in the world. And it was once the cradle of classical liberalism, espousing diversity and tolerance.

Today, it is not a superpower. Its nominal GDP per capita in 2023 was less than the poorest US state, Mississippi (the discrepancy is even more pronounced if you look outside London). Its territorial extent, and its economic prowess, have been so diminished as to relegate it to insignificance, certainly when compared to its previous stature. Even the classical liberalism it championed is showing signs of buckling. Last July, far-right extremists seized upon a heinous attack by a British citizen to ignite far-right riots targeting Muslims across Britain.

Now, we hold the roles Britain occupied just over a century ago. We are, for now, the global superpower. We are the wealthiest country in the world. And we are — at least in principle — a melting pot of diversity. In 1941, Winston Churchill captured the relationship between Britain and America succinctly, saying that they “walk together side by side in majesty, in justice, and in peace.” If Churchill is right — that the destinies of Britain and America are inextricably linked — then we must take a step back to learn a little from the misfortunes of our British cousins before we jump off the bridge after them.

Let’s take a look at fiscal policy, for example. Imagine a budget headlined by massive tax cuts for the richest of society, buttressed by pro-growth talking points. Then imagine the deficit. This is the Trump tax plan. It’s projected to cost $4.6 trillion just to renew the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, $600 billion of which will go towards servicing the debt the legislation requires. Though Trump argues that the resulting economic growth would increase tax revenues enough to pay for this policy, this is unconvincing. The Tax Foundation estimates that even after factoring in the economic stimulus effects, renewing the Trump tax cuts will result in a $2.5 trillion increase in the national debt over the next decade.

If we look at Britain, however, we don’t have to imagine what such a budget could do. Liz Truss’s 2022 mini-budget proposed £45 billion in unfunded tax cuts, which caused a run on the British bond market. Spiraling government bond rates caused the British government’s borrowing costs to soar to the highest in the G7. In the end, the Chancellor of the Exchequer resigned, Truss’s tax cuts were reversed, and Rishi Sunak took over, undoing it all. The rapid elimination of “Trussonomics,” however, was not enough for the ruling Conservatives to dodge the worst electoral defeat in its history.

The parallels between America and Britain, in both their national stories and in the policies of their governments, are certainly strong. If this is the case, then why was only one British history course offered last fall? The syllabus of that course, HIS 214: British Empire in World History, 1600-2000, deals only with Britain in “World History” as a colonial power abroad, and as a result does not devote substantial attention to the issues that plagued the empire at home. Why is it that SPIA does not offer a course scrutinizing the economic and social policies of Great Britain, like it does for the European Union, China and the Middle East?

This University is not lacking in great British historians. Princeton is home to a number of eminent scholars of British history, such as Cannadine and Dame Linda Colley. Therefore, an expansion of British course offerings, to at least comparable to other regional studies programs at Princeton, is an achievable goal.

Churchill once said that “the gift of a common tongue is a priceless inheritance and it may well someday become the foundation of a common citizenship.” It is truly a gift that we may follow the political developments of Britain without a translator. It is a gift that their historical place in the world, as a great power, parallels ours in ways that other Anglophone countries cannot. And it is a gift that we have inherited British political and philosophical traditions. In that way, the history of Britain is the most relatable to ours — a gateway to contextualizing America in the world.

The University cannot squander this opportunity to widen the door to the outside world. Teach us British mistakes so as to not make them American ones. We must endeavor to become leaders that do not, in the words of Margaret Thatcher, “seek election and win in order to manage the decline of a great nation.” We are witnessing the collapse of American hegemony, just like the British did a century ago. Learning from our cousins from across the pond will help contextualize our uncertainty, and arm us with the knowledge to contribute to the most relevant policy debates of the next administration.

Kenneth Chan is a first-year Opinion writer from East Brunswick, N.J. planning to major in Operations Research and Financial Engineering. He can be reached at kchan2[at]princeton.edu.