Does the Iran War Put America First?

How the antiwar right sees Trump’s foreign policy.

Hosted by Ross Douthat

Produced by Victoria Chamberlin

Mr. Douthat is a columnist and the host of the “Interesting Times” podcast.

Whatever happened to America First? It doesn’t feel like a war with Iran was quite what Donald Trump campaigned on in 2024. And my guest this week thinks it’s a big betrayal of the voters who put him in the White House.

Curt Mills is the executive director of The American Conservative, a magazine that champions foreign policy restraint. He argues the Iran war isn’t just a foreign policy blunder — but a move that could shatter the president’s domestic coalition.

Does the Iran War Put America First?

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Ross Douthat: Curt Mills, welcome to “Interesting Times.”

Curt Mills: Thanks for having me.

Douthat: So, I’m going to do some stage-setting here, for anyone in the audience who doesn’t follow all of the ins and outs of right-wing foreign policy debates.

But you are in charge of The American Conservative magazine, which is a magazine founded by Pat Buchanan, among other people, in opposition to the looming Iraq war. And for a long time, The American Conservative was a pretty lonely voice for foreign policy restraint, a kind of antiwar, anti-imperial conservatism.

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Ross Douthat has been an Opinion columnist for The Times since 2009. He is also the host of the Opinion podcast “Interesting Times.” He is the author, most recently, of “Believe: Why Everyone Should Be Religious.” @DouthatNYT • Facebook

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