Conservatives often disagree about wars, but virtually no one likes nation-building. President Donald Trump has so far managed to avoid it in his military interventions.

Trump would surely like to do so again in Iran, but whether he will be successful raises the question of why the United States so often finds itself engaged in nation-building in the first place.

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When going to war to topple a foreign government, political leaders generally face three options: They can help stand up a new government to replace the old one; they can overthrow the regime and let the people of that foreign country sort it out; or they can leave in place elements of the old regime with which Washington can do business.

The United States hasn’t proven to be especially effective at the first option, but the second can lead to power vacuums that wind up being filled by even worse actors than the deposed government. The third option can be somewhat unsatisfying and may lead to future military interventions, such as when the quick,........

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