> would come to the conclusion that whichever regime was most amenable to the American way of doing things would also be the best steward of the public interest

> would come to the conclusion that whichever regime was most amenable to the American way of doing things would also be the best steward of the public interest I doubt public interest meant the populace of the governments they were dabbling in. They're looking first after the CIA's interests, next after the US government, next after US citizens, and maybe finally everyone else. Honestly, the "real, discernible" difference to me is that I'm american and they're not. I can deal with having a rational conversation about the benefits and drawbacks of playing international politics like a zero sum game, but masking jingoism with the guise of absolute morality leaves a bad taste in my mouth.