Warmongers Misread Thucydides on Trump Power

TL;DR

Trump's Thucydides Misuse: Opinion piece argues the second Trump administration misreads Thucydides to justify aggressive power politics, ignoring his warnings on hubris.
Melian Dialogue Echo: Cites Athenians' line that "the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must," mirrored in U.S. actions like Maduro's kidnapping and Iran threats.[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)[[2]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html)
Long-Term Risks: Such unchecked dominance promises short-term gains but risks disaster, like Athens' fall in Thucydides' account.[[3]](https://www.nytimes.com/section/opinion)

The story at a glance

Stewart Patrick, director at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, critiques how Trump administration officials invoke Thucydides' ideas on power to defend actions like the Venezuelan intervention ending in Nicolás Maduro's kidnapping, the ongoing Iran war, pressure on Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky, and demands on NATO allies over the Strait of Hormuz. The piece, a guest essay published amid the U.S.-Iran conflict, contrasts their selective use of the Melian Dialogue with Thucydides' full lessons on the perils of legitimacy-free power. It draws from ancient Athens' overreach during the Peloponnesian War.[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)

Key points

Trump officials paraphrase Thucydides on power's realities, as in Stephen Miller's CNN comment that the world is "governed by strength, that is governed by force, that is governed by power."[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)
President Trump on April 7 warned Iran to capitulate or "a whole civilization will die tonight," amid the war that reinforced raw-power instincts.[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)
Visible text details the Melian Dialogue, where Athens destroys neutral Melos after rejecting pleas, embodying "the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must."[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)
Parallels to U.S. moves: telling Zelensky "you don’t have the cards," pressuring Denmark on Greenland, tariffs on small nations, threats to "take" Cuba, NATO demands without prior consultation on Iran war.[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)
Author portrays this as abandoning legitimacy for rogue dominance, overlooking Thucydides' deeper cautions against unlimited power.[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)

Details and context

The essay focuses on Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War as a realist staple, but faults policymakers for cherry-picking aphorisms like the Melian one while missing how Athens' hubris contributed to its defeat by Sparta.[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)

Recent events provide backdrop: a U.S. operation kidnapped Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro; the Iran war prompted Trump's threat and U.S. naval actions around the Strait of Hormuz, including blockades and NATO tensions; these frame the critique of power-without-limits.[[4]](https://www.politico.com/news/2026/04/17/iran-war-strait-of-hormuz-open-00878387)[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)

Paywall limits full access, but visible portions and snippets emphasize the argument's core: misapplied history risks repeating Athens' strategic errors in today's rivalries.[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)

Key quotes

“The strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.” — Athenians to Melians in Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War.[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)

“We live in a world... that is governed by strength, that is governed by force, that is governed by power.” — Stephen Miller on CNN, defending U.S. Venezuela action.[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)

“A whole civilization will die tonight.” — President Trump warning Iran on April 7.[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)

Why it matters

Unchecked power plays erode U.S. claims to legitimate leadership, fostering global resentment and alliances against American dominance, much like Athens alienated neutrals. For policymakers and citizens, it signals risks of short-term victories in conflicts like Iran leading to isolation or backlash from allies like NATO. Watch escalation in Hormuz negotiations or reactions to U.S. demands on Ukraine and others, though outcomes remain uncertain amid ongoing war dynamics.[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)

[[1]](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/19/opinion/trump-war-thucydides.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share)