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Published by The Galveston County Daily News Published: April 16, 2026
Listen carefully; the legacy media is about sound-bites and headlines but seldom do they explain, or even understand, the strategy behind what is actually happening.  Step back for a moment and ask yourself “What has the United States been doing in the foreign policy arena under the Trump administration?”  There’s a pattern that many haven’t seen and the targets are China, Russia, and protecting America.   For decades the United States has seen rival foreign powers slowly expand their influence across the world, and in particular in the Western Hemisphere.  China has been gaining power in key ports (Panama).  Russia has been projecting military power (Ukraine) and arming the Cubans and Venezuelans.  Both China and Russia have been moving to secure for themselves -- and to deny others -- access to trade corridors (the South China Sea | the Artic passage).  Trump’s foreign policy has put economic pressure on both but specifically China. What Trump has done is not willy-nilly, random decisions and chaos.  It’s a well thought out and strategic.  Look carefully at the pattern of his actions. Panama.  It was never about the canal. It was about removing Chinese influences through their management of key Panamanian ports and their influence over one of the most strategic trade arteries on earth; whoever controls this region influences global commerce. Venezuela.  It was about stopping China and Russia from gaining a foothold in the Western Hemisphere.  History makes it clear that America should protect our hemisphere from foreign influence (The Monroe Doctrine).  Greenland.  Many people laughed at the United States taking over this nation.  But serious strategists understand it’s about controlling key navigation routes in the Atlantic and securing strategic access to the Arctic region.   Greenland is the gateway between North America, Europe, and Russia.   Control this region and you secure the northern defense perimeter of the United States.  Now how about Iran?  This isn’t just about peace in the Middle East.  It’s about keeping nuclear weapons from this rouge nation and the global energy chessboard.  The Chinese rely heavily on Iranian oil which, up to now, they’ve gotten at cut-rate prices because Iranian oil is embargoed/sanctioned by the United States and the European Union.   Disrupt the flow of oil to China, or at least require it to be sold at non-subsidized rates, and there’s a major economic impact on China and its efforts to be a world influencer.  Finally, Cuba which has survived on cut-rate oil from Venezuela.  Just 90 miles from Florida, it’s been a foothold for  rival powers in our hemisphere.  Remove the footholds and the western hemisphere becomes strategically secure again.  Panama, Venezuela, Greenland, Iran, Cuba, all with different headlines, but the same strategic purpose: To reduce Chinese/Russian influence, to protect global trade routes, and to secure America’s energy and national security.  This isn’t random, it’s a grand strategy.  When the United States has been strongest, it has protected the Western hemisphere, protected trade routes, projected strength when necessary.  This is the strategy behind Donald Trump’s foreign policy and Making America Great Again.  So, look behind the headlines and sound-bites and look for patterns.  It’s protecting American interests and our national security.  It’s not random.  It’s purposeful.
	About the Authors and Columnists 2026 Bill and Mark have written over 300 guest columns and editorials together over the last ten years for numerous publications across the country and they continue to do so. Bill lives in Texas and Mark in Utah. Both gentlemen ran against each other in the 2012 Republican Primary for Texas Congressional District 14. Since then they have become close friends and colleagues. In addition to formerly being responsible for overseeing elections in Galveston County as Galveston's Chief Deputy Clerk for Elections, Bill has worked with the Texas State Legislature to improve and craft election legislation.
From a software engineer living in Houston, TX This is great.  Normally we just look at secular actions out of context and miss the bigger picture.  This being said, sometimes you can’t get the bigger picture and you need to look at all of the actions in order to figure out the bigger picture or even the end game.  Good job in doing so. From a retired member of the U.S. intelligence community, living on the East Coast I found your column on President Trump’s “Purposeful” use of U.S. foreign policy both interesting and accurate.  Most Americans pay little attention to foreign policy, even though Russia, China and Iran represent clear national security threats. This is because of our relative isolation across the Atlantic. The United States’  “energy independence” further reinforces isolationist’s views. I think it was George Washington who warned the country against “entangling alliances.” Given our past history in foreign wars many, if not most, Americans now prefer a somewhat “isolationist” posture with little, if any, involvement in foreign conflicts; particularly where it involves the expenditure of American lives and treasure. Many Americans remember the never-ending quagmires of Afghanistan and Vietnam and would prefer not to repeat them. That said, in contrast to past American interventions, President Trump has done a credible job in outlining the danger that the unhinged and radical Iranians would be if they acquired an operational nuclear weapon and the ability to deliver same on Israel, Europe or even America.   The Iranians represent a “clear and present” danger that has become increasingly obvious.   Trump has illustrated this quite well as the increasingly desperate Iranians have resorted to extreme measures, illustrating their evil nature and reluctance to exercise any restraint as their overall situation deteriorated under American military attacks. It’s important to note Donald Trump has done a major service to nearby Gulf States that have been on the Iranian’s “hit list.” There’s little love lost between the key Gulf States (i.e., Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and UAE) and Iran. Trump’s “purposeful” foreign policy has supported our Gulf allies and I would fully expect it to pay future long-range dividends. Panama, Venezuela, Cuba and Greenland seem to be fairly low on the average American's radar, although the brilliantly executed capture of Maduro did get a significant short-lived blip on the radar and probably helped to increase the general awareness of Trump’s well thought-out foreign policy.  Most Americans would probably agree that Maduro had to go! Trump is still waging an uphill battle with any kind of foreign military intervention, but his actions are particularly noteworthy given the “kick the Iranian can down the road” attitude displayed by previous presidents like Obama who thought the Iranians could be bought-off with a sufficiently large pile of cash. Trump still has, and will continue to have, his detractors, particularly our Democrat friends and the legacy media who will criticize any of his actions even if they clearly benefit the U.S.A.  Disagreements and questioning presidential decisions are judicious and good for our nation; but not when they are politically motivated. I’d like to think that Trump has also vividly illustrated the incredible capabilities of the American military which are, and certainly should be, an immense source of pride and appreciation for many Americans. Those of us with even a passing familiarity with military operations understand full well the amount of detailed planning, logistical support and top-notch military hardware that were part of the Venezuelan and Iranian operations.  Too bad that some of our NATO allies – notably Spain, France and Britian – no longer have either the will to stand with us or the capability so to do. Thanks for your column; well thought-out, accurate, and a worthwhile read. Question from a retired software engineer residing in Utah You got most of it right but I’ve got a question about where you say, “Panama.  It was never about the canal. It was about removing Chinese influences through their management of key Panamanian ports and their influence over one of the most strategic trade arteries on earth; whoever controls this region influences global commerce.”  Aren’t these the same thing? Isn’t influence over this strategic trade route actually about the canal itself?  Thanks for writing this.  From a former Congressional Chief of Staff living in Arizona Your article effectively connected a number of dots to help explain “the strategy behind what is actually happening” and you made a strong case to support his premise that the pattern of the President’s foreign policy actions were truly “Purposeful and not Random”! After finishing reading in your article, it occurs to me that besides clearly “protecting American interests and our national security,” that another motivation behind Trump’s strategy might be to address the threats posed by the country responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic that originated from a laboratory in Wuhan, CHINA! From a retired federal law enforcement officer living in North Carolina You have a way of encapsulating ideas so the layman can comprehend them.  All very accurate and supportable.

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