Mr. Beinart is a contributing Opinion writer at The Times.

President Trump has offered various explanations for attacking Iran: the regime’s nuclear program, its proxies’ history of attacks on U.S. troops, its repression of its people. He offered a different set of explanations for attacking Venezuela: its suspected role in drug smuggling, and what he called its theft of “our” oil. He’s also provided justifications for wanting to acquire Greenland, reassert influence over the Panama Canal and even annex Canada.

These rationales share a theme: The United States should be free to remove foreign leaders and dominate foreign lands without regard to national sovereignty and the conventions of international law. “My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that........

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