Josh Campbell is a CNN analyst and term member with the Council on Foreign Relations. He previously served as a Supervisory Special Agent with the FBI. Follow him on Twitter at @joshscampbell. The views expressed in this commentary are his own.

(CNN) Those who have served overseas representing the United States know the awesome power of the nation's brand. Our reputation as a country dedicated to freedom and justice precedes all who are honored to identify themselves as American officials.

Josh Campbell

While serving diplomatic and operational assignments with the FBI in over 20 countries, I saw the power of that brand up close.

When I spoke, people listened. Not because I was an inordinately gifted orator, but rather because I was speaking on behalf of the United States government, an imperfect but often emulated conglomeration of agencies known throughout the world as reflecting righteousness, fairness, and truth. As my former boss, FBI Director James Comey, would explain to fellow employees, an agency's strong reputation garners immediate trust, even from total strangers.

The benefits derived from such a powerful national brand were not limited to law enforcement, but extended to an array of colleagues I worked alongside in the foreign service, CIA, and military. As one American ambassador in South Asia described it to me, we are effective in every corner of the globe because of the moral authority generated at home by the manner in which we govern ourselves and our commitment to the rule of law.

It is this moral authority that is currently threatened by elected officials who continue to steamroll norms associated with equal justice. Shrewd calculations focused on short-term political survival and misguided notions of what constitutes "strength" appear to outweigh any consideration of how political actions domestically might be perceived abroad. This departure from established norms has manifested itself in how our leaders treat law enforcement investigations and how our leaders have used law enforcement officers to repugnantly treat outsiders.

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