The U.S. spends 3.6 percent of its gross domestic product on defense, more than any other NATO member. "American Umpire," a new documentary airing Tuesday on PBS, asks why the U.S. volunteers for military spending abroad when others don't.
The film is based on a book by former San Diego State University history professor Elizabeth Cobbs Hoffman, who argued the U.S. must share the burden of protecting its allies more evenly in order to return to "global normalcy." Her husband, Jim Shelley, directed the film, "American Umpire."
Shelley said he was careful to interview military officials and diplomats who served under both Democratic and Republican presidents to create a nonpartisan film. But comments this summer from Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on NATO agreements echoed some of the ideas debated in "American Umpire." Trump suggested that as president he may not automatically defend NATO allies if they are attacked, instead checking to see if they had paid the required NATO contributions.
While Shelley said Trump had a "fundamentally isolationist view" that few foreign policy experts agreed with, re-examining NATO's role is an important one.
"Raising the question about NATO and what does NATO do for the U.S. is a very important question. And it's been asked by many different people in academic and policy, but Trump was the first politician to raise it," Shelley said. "That's good for the national debate."
Shelley joins Midday Edition on Tuesday to discuss what other countries could step in to help with international peacekeeping. "American Umpire" airs Tuesday on KPBS-TV at 9 p.m. It will also be featured as part of the GI Film Festival on Saturday.
