Captain America is the paragon of virtue in the Marvel Universe. While someone clad in the colors of the American flag and throwing a shield at enemies might seem like a heavy-handed metaphor for the more aggressive aspects of American foreign policy, Steve Rogers is not about putting America first, but rather about living up to the highest ideals of the American dream.
Over the years, Captain America has championed the free press, immigrant communities, the rights of religious minorities, and free elections. He's also done some downright horrendous things, like building concentration camps in the recent Secret Empire event. Here are ten morally questionable decisions Steve Rogers made.
10 Start A Civil War
The Civil War storyline is one that fans seem particularly divided about, making it the perfect place to begin a discussion about morally questionable actions. The story is about a political dispute between Cap and Iron Man. While Tony Stark believed superhumans should register their identities and powers with the government, Steve Rogers saw this infringement of civil liberties as a new brand of McCarthyism.
Cap felt so strongly opposed he went to war against the United States government and half of the superhero community. When Captain America turns against the American government, it's a pretty good indicator that one of the two lost their way.
9 Recruit Questionable Allies
Captain America is both a team player and a team leader. People follow him into battle because they know his moral compass usually points True North. He also sees the best in people, regardless of their past.
During Civil War, Cap became desperate enough that he recruited the Punisher to work with him. He then also accepted the help of some supervillains who worried that America was becoming a police state (though Punisher immediately killed these before they could actually help). More recently, he added Deadpool--a guy who kills people for money--to the Avengers Unity Squad. Perhaps he's a little too trusting of others.
8 Mock The French
When it began in the early 2000's, Marvel's Ultimate Universe was the cool new comic universe that retold classic stories with their own contemporary twist. Some of the stories were brilliant. Others ranged from forgettable to just plain awful. One thing many fans complained about was that Ultimate Steve Rogers was a mean-spirited bully--which is to say the opposite of everything people expect from Captain America.
In one oft-quoted line, Captain America belittles the French while killing an enemy with his shield. Referring to the big A on his helmet, he yells "You think the letter on my head stands for France?" It seems he could still represent the United States of America without being divisive toward other nations.
7 Undermine The Other Captain America
After Steve Rogers had the Super Soldier Serum sucked out of him and was reduced to an old man, his longtime friend and partner Sam Wilson takes up the mantle of Captain America. Sam suffers from a bit of impostor syndrome, but quickly proves himself worthy of the title.
Eventually Steve gets better with the help of a sentient cosmic cube named Kobik who has decided to become a little girl (an event that could only happen in comics). For a while, both Sam and Steve use the name Captain America. While Sam works to help marginalized groups, Steve (who is secretly working for Hydra) works to advance the interests of the intelligence community. Having two Captain Americas openly disagreeing with one another is not good for national unity.
6 Punch Out A Defeated Bruce Banner
This is another example of Ultimate Captain America being the ultimate bully. This specific incident occurs when Hulk loses control and goes on a rampage through New York. After being subdued, the Hulk reverts to the scrawny weak-bodied Bruce Banner.
As Banner crawls out of a ditch, begging not to be hurt, Steve assures Bruce that despite the actions of the Hulk, Bruce himself is part of the team and has nothing to worry about. Then Steve kicks Banner in the jaw so hard he spits teeth. So much for team loyalty.
5 Black Ops Missions
Black ops work can be an important tool for preserving national security. It can also be sketchy beyond belief as covert teams perform assassinations, destabilize foreign governments, and just do the sorts of dirty work that is classified for the sole reason that it's hard to justify in front of human rights tribunals.
When Steve forms a black ops team in Secret Avengers, he repeatedly works from the shadows to stop terrorist threats, disarm nuclear weapons, shut down traffickers, and save the world. He also racks up quite a body count. Black ops work requires one to operate in morally grey areas at the best of times.
4 Throw Jack Flag Out Of A Plane
There are a lot of big reveals in the first issue of Captain America: Steve Rogers by author Nick Spencer and artist Jesus Saiz. This series takes the character on a dark journey as he embodies the worst of American ideals, rather than the best--a trend that will appear for the rest of the entries on this list.
For his opening mission, Steve teams up with two other heroes, Jack Flag and Liberty Belle. At the end of the issue, Steve and Jack Flag attack Baron Zemo on an airplane. In a dramatic twist, Captain America shoves Jack out of the airplane in an attempt to kill him.
3 Join Hydra
"Hail Hydra." Those are the words Steve Rogers speaks on the last page of the opening issue of Captain America: Steve Rogers. While Cap is far from a perfect guy, his decision to hail a white supremacist terrorist organization cannot be justified.
Later in the series, it is revealed that Captain America's past was altered by the same cosmic cube that returned him to health, since the cube had allied with Hydra. While Steve Rogers is not culpable for actions he took after reality itself was altered to make him evil, that doesn't make any of his actions with Hydra remotely okay.
2 World Domination
Taking over the world is generally one of those things supervillains try (and usually fail) to do. When Captain America took over the planet, he did everything possible to prove he could out-evil all the other megalomaniac villains ever to attempt global domination.
After taking over the planet, Steve kills civilians without due process, builds concentration camps to detain minority groups, works alongside supervillains, betrays his friends, and tricks an alien fleet into attacking the Earth. While he also protects the world from some threats, Cap is clearly evil during this time period.
1 Doom the Multiverse
While this is the darkest event on the list, it actually is not an example of Captain America being turned evil by Hydra, nor is it the result of a writer making him a selfish bully. This is him being unwilling to compromise his virtues even when the cost is the multiverse itself.
The events in question began in Jonathan Hickman's New Avengers. When multiple dimensions begin crashing into each other, Cap genuinely tries to save both his own reality and another. However, when he fails, he proves unwilling to destroy realities to protect his own and preserve the multiverse as a whole. It's possible that there was nothing he could do, but he certainly is unwilling to try. Because of his rigid moral code, his teammates in the Illuminati wipe his mind and opt to act without him.