When explaining his vision for the Star Wars prequels, George Lucas said his movies are “like poetry, sort of. They rhyme. Every stanza rhymes with the last one.” He meant that the prequels echoed the themes and storylines of the original trilogy.

I kept returning to this quote as The Vandenberg Coalition assembled our recently published timeline featuring reflections about key speeches and documents spanning the last 250 years of U.S. foreign policy. Not because American statesmen consciously sought to imitate what came before them—though some certainly did—but because certain lessons echo across generations of American statecraft:

First, America must be strong abroad to safeguard our liberties at home. In his Farewell Address, George Washington recognized that while young America must first safeguard our own independence, America’s growing economic and political strength would eventually give us a stake in world affairs. Nearly 150 years later, Franklin Roosevelt’s “Arsenal of Democracy” speech contended that advancing technology and expanding American power had made global events impossible to ignore, creating greater responsibilities for the United States. And after World War II, Senator Arthur Vandenberg argued in his “Speech Heard ‘Round The World” that America must continue to embrace an active global leadership role consistent with the great power that we are; failing to do so would risk our security.

Second, understanding our adversaries must inform our own strategy. George Kennan in his Long Telegram and Paul Nitze in NSC-68 analyzed the threat posed by the Soviet Union to the American way of life and prescribed strategies to contain the Soviets accordingly. Similarly, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo underscored the threat posed by the Chinese Communist Party in a series of speeches in 2020 and offered a path forward for winning today’s great power competition.

Third, strategic partnerships amplify our own strength. In declaring independence, the Continental Congress was appealing to other countries for support in defending our own freedom against the British, leading to the Treaty of Alliance with France in 1778 and other support from Spain. Their support made our victory possible. In the 1940s, Presidents Roosevelt and Harry Truman recognized that American material support could shield us from totalitarian threats; first through support for the Allies, and then later against communism through the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan. This tradition continues in partnerships such as the U.S.-Israel relationship, established with America’s recognition of Israel in 1948 and sustained by enduring mutual interests and commitment.

And finally, while material interests and power dynamics may reign supreme, American founding principles still matter. The Declaration of Independence and Constitution accomplished more than simply establishing American sovereignty; they are rooted in the unalienable rights endowed to us by our Creator, which define how America perceives our global standing. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights represents an attempt to cultivate a set of universal principles to serve as a common standard for the nations of the world. America must not moralize or impose democracy for its own sake, but we should remain a champion for freedom, supporting existing democracies and pro-freedom movements aligned with American principles, as Reagan articulated in his Westminster Address and his “Tear Down This Wall” speech.

Like Star Wars, the American foreign policy canon is vast and endlessly debated. Our timeline is an effort to add to this dialogue. By identifying the themes that recur across generations—ones that center around the necessity of American leadership—it is our hope that we can better understand the traditions that have shaped American statecraft and the principles worth preserving. And for our readers, we also hope that this timeline serves as a reminder of America’s remarkable impact on world affairs.