One big problem is that a lot of the "respectable" US foreign policy establishment are idiots. Look at a moron like Bill Kristol, an unmitigated disaster if there ever was one, who keeps getting the ears of mainstream politicians. Of course, the idiots that Trump has surrounded himself with give new meaning to the word "incompetent" but this should not blind us to the fact that US foreign policy - especially that coming out of the Republicans - is often deeply stupid. Consider: it was obvious from the outset that going into Iraq would be a disaster. Yet the people in the WH chose to ignore that reality and do it anyway. The US went in knowing nothing about Iraq yet it was surprised that things did not turn out as planned. When your brightest minds are creating that kind of policy, something is wrong.