European mercantilism which promoted a favorable balance of trade always sought to bleed the trade partner to benefit the motherland. So, the colonies, being disadvantaged, felt they had to be free. Americans have promoted freeedom and free trade in a way that benefits everyone. I suspect that the mercantilists still think that everyone else will end up with all of the American money and we will be broke, but it doesn't seem to be working out that way, at all.
The joke on the mercantilists is the fact that the most prosperous country has a "negative balance of payments" - a "trade deficit" because less prosperous nations desire to invest in the more prosperous ones.All in the world a "trade deficit" is is positive net foreign investment in the country. That is its only possible cause.