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Mccain Vs. Biden: Not All 'foreign Policy Experience' Is Created Equal
By Arianna Huffington, Tribune Media Services
DENVER -- Here at the Democratic Convention, there are two
conversations going on. One is about the Clintons and their
supporters: Did Bill really insist that his speech be about the
economy and his legacy instead of national security? What stage of the
grieving process are Hillary's supporters at? And will that process be
complete before or after Nov. 4 ?
The other conversation is about Joe Biden: "He'll really have Barack's back." "The labor unions are giddy about the choice." "He's a foreign policy homerun."
But all foreign policy experience is not created equal.
Of course, the pick adds foreign-policy heft to the ticket. Three decades on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, including a pair of stints as chairman, will do that. But Biden's value to an Obama administration in this crucial arena extends well beyond time served.
The past seven-plus years have shown us that "foreign policy experience," in and of itself, isn't all it's cracked up to be. For Exhibit A, look no further than George Bush's most "experienced" foreign policy advisor: Dick Cheney. How's that working out? And Don Rumsfeld had spent lots of time on foreign policy practice field too.
What's great about the Biden pick isn't just that he has "foreign policy expertise," it's the kind of expertise he has, how he uses it, and how useful his expertise is for the unique challenges we currently face around the world. His approach favors diplomacy and engagement -- backed up by a toughness that allowed him to confront Milosevic face-to-face.
Contrast that with the approach of John McCain, who also has "foreign policy experience": Judging by his track record, McCain's experience has apparently taught him that pretty much every problem in the world has a military solution.
Back in 2000, during a GOP debate, McCain was asked by Larry King, "What area of American international policy would you change immediately as president?"
McCain's reply? "I'd institute a policy that I call 'rogue state rollback.' I would arm, train, equip, both from without and from within, forces that would eventually overthrow the governments and install free and democratically elected governments. . . . As long as Saddam Hussein is in power, I am convinced that he will pose a threat to our security."
In other words, he was a believer in democracy at the end of a loaded gun even before Bush was.
But as the subsequent years have proven, there is a limit to what the military -- even one as skilled and powerful as ours -- can achieve on its own. Just this past week, the
As the Times puts it, the move against the Awakening by the government "is causing a rift with the American military, which contends that any significant diminution of the Awakening could result in renewed violence, jeopardizing the substantial security gains in the past year."
"If it is not handled properly, we could have a security issue," said Brigadier Gen. David Perkins.
These kinds of sectarian hatreds -- many of them hundreds of years old -- will not be fixed by military means, particularly a military that has as its commander in chief a man who's a bit shaky on the whole Sunni/Shia thing.
Yes, Biden voted for the war (a decision he says he regrets), but he made it clear that our goal in Iraq should be limited to ending Iraq's weapons programs -- not achieving "rogue state rollback."
What's more, right before the war vote, Biden reached across the aisle and, with the help of Dick Lugar and Chuck Hagel, two of his Republican colleagues on the Foreign Relations committee, helped craft a proposal that would limit the president's ability to wage war on Iraq, forcing him to seek U.N. approval. And, if the U.N. had said no, Bush would have had to return to Congress and prove that the Iraqi WMD threat was so "grave" that only military action could eliminate it.
That bipartisan effort was torpedoed by Bush (with an assist from Trent Lott and Dick Gephardt) -- the last thing he and his administration wanted was diplomacy. We can expect more of the same from McCain.
So, by all means, let's use the occasion of the Biden selection to have a foreign policy debate. But let's start by acknowledging that all "foreign policy experience" is not created equal. And let's have the election be a referendum on which kind of experience the American people think will make the United States safer.
========
Arianna Huffington's e-mail address is arianna@huffingtonpost.com.
(c) 2008 Arianna Huffington. Distributed by Tribune Media Services, Inc.
This news arrived on: 08/28/2008
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Posted Comments:
09-05-2008 01:06
gumboboy wrote:
to sunshine49
There is more to diplomacy than just talk. There are sanctions and pressure from their allies because each country has their own needs for their people and they will eventually need the "infidels" to supply that. Just like in South Africa with Apartied. War should be only as a last resort when all other means fail, and by no means should we fabricate reasons for war. Our sons and daughters are too valuable for that. We are the leaders of the free world, there is a responsibility that goes with that. We cannot yield that big stick that Teddy Roosevelt spoke of so foolishly. The pen is surely mightier than the sword.
09-04-2008 19:16
Sunshine49 wrote:
To Gumboboy
How many times have you run into people that you can't reason with in your lifetime? Probably hundreds! Some country's dictators cannot be reasoned with. Muslim terrorists cannot be reasoned with. They don't even want to talk to us infidels. Once, here in the U.S., when my family was trying to sell some property, a Muslim man came to talk about buying. He would not even talk to me at all because I am a women. How do you reason with someone in a case like that? You are assuming that everybody is like us (here in the U.S.) When our two major political parties can't even agree, why should we expect that foreign countries will be willing to act like long lost friends towards us. Wise up! People are different -- they're priorities are different -- their culture is different. There will always be differences and therefore, disagreement and war. As I said before, ONLY Jesus will "change" the world!
09-04-2008 05:20
gumboboy wrote:
I don't look at war as "merely politics by other means," rather I see it as the failure of diplomacy. If you ask any soldier why he's fighting he'll tell you for his buddies next to him. If you ask any soldier who saw one of his buddies die, he'll tell you that in war we all lose. Ask any soldier at Guadal Canal, Bataan, Hamburger Hill, or any who fought in the Battle of the Buldge or the Tet Offensive if war is anything so trivial as politics by other means.
09-04-2008 00:12
Sunshine49 wrote:
McCain Vs. Biden
I believe that the book of Revelations says there will be wars upon wars and rumors of wars. Sounds like now. The ONLY one who will bring peace to the world will be Jesus Christ. But the Liberal Supreme Court justices want to take God out of this country and turn it into another Sodom And Gomorra. Good enough reason NOT to vote for Obama.
09-03-2008 12:23
Texas Katie wrote:
to George
Yes, I think it sounds like a war monger also. However, I don't really believe it is that simple. You must look into a person's background and training to really understand where they are coming from and John McCain's entire background and training - including that of his ancestors - is to solve every problem with military might.
That type of person is of inestimable value during a time of war. This war in Iraq is, however, of our making.
I do not believe that history has taught us that war works. If that were true, wouldn't we be at peace?
McCain is definitely a time bomb waiting to happen given what we are dealing with.
That type of person is of inestimable value during a time of war. This war in Iraq is, however, of our making.
I do not believe that history has taught us that war works. If that were true, wouldn't we be at peace?
McCain is definitely a time bomb waiting to happen given what we are dealing with.
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