A post-Obama administration should remember that friends and allies count. Don't believe the old dictum about having only "permanent interests and no permanent friends." We have some very good permanent friends on the global and the regional level. On the global scale I would highlight Australia, Canada, the UK, Japan, and Israel; on the regional level, ROK, Poland, Czech Republic, Netherlands, Singapore, Colombia, Chile--and Taiwan.
There are other countries with whom we can work on occasion and with which we have overlapping interests, at times, and conflicting ones, at others: France, Spain, India, Mexico, Vietnam, and Brazil come to mind. There are others. We need a foreign policy establishment that recognizes our long-term friends, acknowledges and respects their core interests, and--how about this for a revolutionary thought?--doesn't betray, or throw them under the bus in an effort to curry favor with committed enemies or transient friends.
The UN and the OAS? Bah. Use them to expound our views forcefully, or get out. Do not ever seek their permission to defend our interests. Seriousness of purpose is the greatest power. This misadministration is not serious. We need to mean what we say, and say what we mean. When our enemies look into our eyes they should see the gates of hell slowly swinging open.
If you have pledged to help your neighbor put out the fire on his roof, it is advisable that your own roof not be on fire, too. If we want to preserve our status internationally, we must fix things at home. The government-led destruction of the dollar, of our manufacturing base, and of our energy independence must cease.
Cut domestic government spending, eliminate taxes and regulations that hinder manufacturing and innovation, and--for crying out loud!--develop our own vast energy resources. Eliminating or even reducing our dependence on foreign oil is the second single greatest step to enhanced national security and global power. Achieving that would buck up the dollar, contribute to the general wealth of the United States, enrich our treasury, and free us of countless foreign policy concerns and headaches. Drill for oil in Texas, or fight for it in the Middle East. Our choice.
Oh, yes. The single greatest step we can take to reestablishing a foreign policy that makes sense? Send President Obama back to his shadily purchased mansion in Chicago.
Getting US out of the UN has been on conservatives' agendas for decades. What is the first step?
ReplyDeleteWell said, Diplomad. Hear hear! We could see the handwriting on the wall when Obama sent the bust of Churchill back to the British. I wonder if they'll offer it back to Romney? Better yet, I wonder if he'll send them a note saying he'd like it back. That would set a good tone. And set him off nicely from Obama.
ReplyDeleteDiplomad for Sec State!
ReplyDeleteNo, I don't hate you, but I think we do need you.
"When our enemies look into our eyes they should see the gates of hell slowly swinging open." Perfect.
Our friends should know they can trust us.
Our enemies should also know they can trust us. The 'extremely vicious dog on a short chain' Russian description of ou military should be the model. (If that little story was ever true.)
Mr. Obama's and Ms. Clinton's foreign policy has been a mystery to me since the day he took office.
ReplyDeleteI was particularly offended by the returning of the Winston Churchill bust.
What compelled him to do that?
Couldn't he just have stashed it in a closet? Why did he have to return it? What positive did Mr. Obama get out of that?
Trust is a depletable commodity among those with a couple of firing synapses, and the US under Obama has hit peak trust, skidded on scarcity, and has no prospects for acquiring any more.
ReplyDeleteA Republican administration or two cannot rebuild, regain or re-establish trust, since the world has seen an American electorate so self-destructive as to vote in leaders who would undermine our traditional allies in a Progressive agenda to deconstruct this country and ruin its standing in the world. The Left will always be voted back in at some point, presumably having learned better how to gull the guileless proles and lead us to a Better World. Even those countries who should welcome American capitulation would never be able to trust a nation so bent on self-destruction; good relations with them would be a matter of paying them off, constantly. Ditto for domestic partisans and interests. And threats aren't effective when there are so many others eager to join in against you.
What this country had was intentionally, maliciously squandered so that, at least for us non-zombies, all trust is bust and cred is dead. And, sorry Aretha, our respect is wrecked, too.
Glad you think Taiwan is a dependable ally. I've just come back from a vacation there, where I RWS their official language.
ReplyDeleteI think they'd love to be an American ally again, and, in their heart of hearts, they think that an American hegemony would be better than a Chinese one (unless, by some off twist of Providence, they recover the Mainland). However, their government is quietly trying to broker the best possible deal it can with the Mainland; largely out of the conviction that they can't depend on us.
Even South Korea is quietly hedging its bets on a China dominant in the Asia/Pacific region.