View this email online IN THE NEWS Fam, Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve heard a lot of discussion about the phrase “America First.” In his 2025 inaugural address, President Trump bemoaned the idea that, “We now have a government that cannot manage even a simple crisis at home while, at the same time, stumbling into a continuing catalogue of catastrophic events abroad.” He would be the one to change that, he said.  But Republican critics of the current administration are asserting that Trump’s recent actions in Venezuela, as well as statements he’s made about Colombia, Cuba and Iran, are part of an escalating pattern in which the president is forgoing his promise to focus on domestic issues above all else. Shattered is the idea of an American president who would keep a laser focus on America. Instead, every day it becomes more obvious that the fate of Americans is tied up with the fate of, well, everyone else. William Allen Rogers When I was in high school, we spent one year studying U.S. history, one year studying contemporary U.S. issues, one year studying European history (really, Western European history), and one year studying the rest of the world. That world history class — “Global Issues,” it was called — was amazing. It helped me begin to understand what was going on at the time in India and Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq, Russia and Israel and Sierra Leone. But there were gaps, to be sure. We must have touched on Iran at some point. Venezuela surely came up a few times — those were the days of Hugo Chavez, after all. East Asia was referenced — I would bet the farm on that. Africa got a couple weeks, at least. (Greenland? I’ll be honest, I can’t say one way or the other.) But in 40 or so weeks, there was only so much we could cover, and none of those places got especially thorough treatment. Which I think about often these days as I try to make sense of the headlines. It feels like just as I’m trying to bolster my knowledge of one region, there’s another history that I’m desperate to brush up on. I was less than halfway through a book about Venezuelan oil when I started getting antsy — how much time did I have before I needed to switch over to a history of Cuba? And were there countries not even on my radar that would soon be dominating the news cycle? I was not a particularly diligent student of U.S. history. But somewhere, not so deep in my brain, I can still summon up the date of the Battle of Antietam. I can tell you John Adams’ last words. I still remember minute details about George Washington’s love of ice cream. But like so many Americans, my understanding of world history is inconsistent and often shallow.  Then again, maybe that means my understanding of American history was never that good to begin with. Because the idea that the U.S. has been, or ever could be, a nation unconcerned with other nations, is a fantasy almost as old as the country itself. There is no U.S. history removed from world history. President Trump ended his 2025 inauguration speech as he often does, by hearkening back to a previous time in our nation’s history: “The United States will once again consider itself a growing nation — one that increases our wealth, expands our territory, builds our cities, raises our expectations, and carries our flag into new and beautiful horizons,” he said. Any true history buff would have realized that those promises were not metaphorical.  So as the year marches forward, I’ll continue my journey to understand American history by reading about…everywhere else. On that note, seriously — anyone have a good Greenland book to recommend? Newsletter continues after sponsor message ON THE POD Getty Images Speaking of which…the U.S. ousting of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is just the latest chapter in a long tome of American intervention in Latin America. So on the show this week, NPR immigration correspondent Jasmine Garsd brings us to the New York courthouse where President Maduro was indicted by the U.S. government. We also talk to Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Greg Grandin, who explains how the modern concept of national sovereignty — a country’s right to govern itself — originated in Latin America as a response to U.S. expansion. Listen Here TRY CODE SWITCH+ FOR FREE Support discussions that matter - try a subscription to Code Switch+. Dive deep into the conversation with none of the sponsor interruptions, and know that you’re making this all possible with your support. Learn more at plus.npr.org/codeswitch and start with 30 days free by using the code "freemonth".    Explore NPR+ WHAT KEEPS YOU UP AT NIGHT Fam, I want to hear from you all. What history lessons did you learn in school? What did you feel was missing? And how, if at all, do you try to supplement those missing pieces as an adult? Email me at CodeSwitch@npr.org and let me know your thoughts.  I'll be back next week, hopefully with a head full of interesting facts about suaasat and tupilait. Meet you here. -Leah Donnella, senior editor Written by Leah Donnella and edited by Dalia Mortada Stream your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to find your local station stream. Subscribe to Code Switch+. Your support helps make our show possible and unlocks access to our sponsor-free episodes. What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: codeswitch@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. 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