Americans Are Increasingly Skeptical of Foreign Military Intervention

Nicolás Maduro’s removal should be welcomed by anyone who values liberty. Yet data show Americans—led by the youngest adults—are turning noninterventionist.

The stunning U.S. raid on Venezuela that removed President and socialist thug Nicolás Maduro from power to face trial in the U.S. raises questions: What's next for long-suffering but hopeful Venezuelans, what is the legal basis for snatching a country's head of state without congressional authorization, and where do Americans stand on the Trump administration's nation-building project? We'll have to wait and see on the first point, and the answer to the second is that there is no legal basis for unilateral presidential missions to depose foreign leaders. But while the public will need some time to digest these events, we know Americans—especially young ones—are increasingly dubious about foreign adventures.

Young Americans Sour on World Engagement

"Younger adults are much less likely than their elders to value active U.S. engagement in world affairs," Pew Research reported two weeks ago. "39% of adults ages 18 to 29 and 44% of those 30 to 49 say it is extremely or very important that the U.S. play an active role in world affairs. By comparison, 59% of those 50 to 64 and 73% of those 65 and older say the same."

Normally this is the point to note wide partisan differences on the issue, with the overall numbers overshadowed by major disagreements between supporters of the two major parties. But there's only a 9 percent gap between the opinions of Democrats (59 percent favor an active role for the U.S.) and Republicans (50 percent want an active role). The age gap is much wider.

"Younger adults are far less likely than older adults to prioritize the U.S. maintaining military superiority over other countries," Pew notes. "For example, a quarter of adults under 30 view this as important. This rises to 52% among those 65 and older."

Generational disagreements over the proper role of the United States in the world are especially relevant when the U.S. parks a powerful fleet off the coast of Venezuela, bombs its military bases, and stages a movie-ready snatch-and-grab of the country's tyrannical leader as a step toward regime change. It's precisely the sort of operation about which younger Americans seem especially dubious.

But Americans in general are skeptical that the U.S. has a role to play in Venezuela. In December, Quinnipiac University pollsters asked Americans if they "support or oppose U.S. military attacks to kill suspected drug smugglers on boats in international waters?" Fifty-three percent opposed the idea, against 43 percent who supported it. Partisan disagreement was huge, with 83 percent of Republicans favoring strikes, while 89 percent of Democrats and 57 percent of independents are opposed.

The same poll asked about "U.S. military action inside Venezuela?" Sixty-three percent opposed action and only 25 percent supported the idea. Again, a majority of Republicans favored intervention, but only barely at 52 percent. Eighty-nine percent of Democrats and 68 percent of independents were opposed.

On a similar note, just before Christmas YouGov found that "using military force to overthrow Maduro or to invade Venezuela is unpopular, with only around one in five Americans and less than half of Republicans supporting each plan." Even among Republicans, only "44% of Republicans support forcibly overthrowing Maduro" (80 percent of Democrats and 52 percent of independents opposed the idea). Similar majorities of all age groups opposed using military force to overthrow Maduro, except for Americans 45–64, for whom opposition was 48 percent (but support was only 26 percent with the rest "not sure"). Opposition to invading Venezuela was highest among those over 65 at 68 percent, followed by 63 percent of those 18-29, 55 percent of Americans 30-44, and 58 percent of people 45-64.

Young Adults Lead Support for Seeking Congressional Approval

Importantly, most Americans across partisan boundaries say President Donald Trump should get congressional authorization before using military force. Broken down by age, the highest support for requiring congressional approval was among the youngest—those 18-29 (81 percent) followed by those 30-44 (75 percent). Sixty-nine percent of those 45-64 said Trump should seek congressional approval, as did 74 percent of people over 65.

That's awkward given that the administration acted on its own to remove Maduro from power. Sen. Mike Lee (R–Utah) likely represented both his party's base and the American public when he commented, "I look forward to learning what, if anything, might constitutionally justify this action in the absence of a declaration of war or authorization for the use of military force." Lee later seemed to accept Secretary of State Marco Rubio's claim that the action was justified as an arrest to execute an outstanding warrant against Maduro with accompanying force to protect law enforcers. That could be an unfortunate precedent the next time Chinese agents snatch a dissident from American streets.

Venezuela isn't an isolated case. YouGov pollsters separately found "support for increasing military aid to Ukraine has fallen since October: 29% of Americans now say they want aid to be increased, while 30% want aid to be stopped or decreased and 20% want it to stay the same." As usual, there's a significant partisan divide, but both Republicans and Democrats are growing more skeptical of continued military aid. Little difference was seen among age groups in terms of limiting or stopping aid to Ukraine.

Broad Fatigue With Military Intervention

Basically, Americans are tired of overseas interventions after decades of involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq. Polls consistently find fatigue with America's extended wars in those countries and dissatisfaction with political leaders who got us involved. In fact, Trump originally attracted support, in part, by promising to end the country's involvement in "forever wars." While he has yet to commit the U.S. to an extended intervention, he has become increasingly comfortable with using military force without seeking constitutionally mandated permission from Congress and in ways that could spark larger wars.

"The Constitution's allocation of power over foreign affairs was designed precisely to prevent unilateral executive decisions like the one we saw play out last night in a series of aerial attacks and explosions from entangling the nation in unwise and avoidable conflict," the Cato Institute's Clark Neily warned after the strike on Venezuela.

Raised in the shadow of Afghanistan and Iraq, younger Americans take such warnings to heart. Even more than their elders, who are themselves largely opposed to foreign adventures, they're skeptical of an active role for the U.S. on the world stage. They also overwhelmingly want presidents to consult with Congress and seek approval before using the military.

Maduro's removal should be welcomed by anybody who values liberty. He was a thug who, along with his predecessor, Hugo Chavez, and their allies abused his people, violated their rights, and impoverished his country. Venezuela and its people deserve a fresh start.

But, led by the youngest adults, Americans are turning noninterventionist and want less military adventurism around the world. They certainly don't want conflicts initiated by presidents acting alone.