Just War, Traditionalism, and Realism
The “realism” school of foreign policy—formerly called “realpolitik”—is contrary to the traditional understanding of just wars.
War Has Two Sides
Russia and the West have two fundamentally different ways of looking at the world, which threatens to indefinitely prolong the war in Ukraine.
Towards a Catholic Foreign Policy
For decades, American foreign policy has been off track. The United States has launched wars in far-flung corners of the globe that have not only killed and wounded thousands of brave members of the American military, but our foreign interventions have led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of others, many of them innocent … Read more
Afghanization: A Half Year Plan
President Barack Obama’s five-point plan for turning the war back to the Afghans is designed to cover the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces and “forge a just and lasting peace.” What does the plan involve, and can it work? Here are the five points: Making Afghans responsible for their own security within two years … Read more
Ron Paul: Reactionary or Visionary
After his fourth-place showing in Florida, Ron Paul, by then in Nevada, told supporters he had been advised by friends that he would do better if only he dumped his foreign policy views, which have been derided as isolationism. Not going to do it, said Dr. Paul to cheers. And why should he? Observing developments … Read more
Who Wants War With Iran?
On Sept. 21, 1976, as his car rounded Sheridan Circle on Embassy Row, former Chilean ambassador Orlando Letelier was assassinated by car bomb. Ronni Moffitt, a 25-year-old American women who worked with Letelier at the leftist Institute for Policy Studies, died with him. Michael Townley, an ex-CIA asset in the hire of Chile’s intelligence … Read more
Obama Succeeds Abroad When He Follows Bush, Clinton
The world usually turns out to work differently from what American presidents expected when they were campaigning. Franklin Roosevelt campaigned on domestic issues in 1932 and ran a more isolationist foreign policy for his first years in office than any of the Republican presidents elected in the 1920s. But he became aware of the … Read more
Ron Paul Challenges His Party’s Mindless Militarism
Reporters routinely describe Ron Paul’s foreign policy views as “isolationist” because he opposes the promiscuous use of military force. This is like calling him a recluse because he tries to avoid fistfights. The implicit assumption that violence is the only way to interact with the world reflects the oddly circumscribed nature of foreign policy … Read more
It’s the Foreign Policy, Stupid
“It’s the economy, stupid,” some dude named Carville once said. He was referring to what was the correct prescription for winning a presidential election — and it’s been gospel ever since. He’s probably right. Except when it comes to actually being president, it’s something else altogether. “It’s the foreign policy, stupid” — because day one … Read more
Obama Has a Knack for Ticking off America’s Friends
The election of Barack Obama, we were told, would bring new respect and friendship for America in the world. No longer would we be led by a Texas cowboy ignorant of and indifferent to world opinion. Instead, we would have a visionary leader sympathetic to the governments and peoples of the world. But Obama’s best … Read more
Henry Hyde Was Right, G.W. Bush Was Wrong
Events unfolding in the Middle East are proving that Henry Hyde was right and George Bush was wrong on the wisdom of a foreign policy focused on promoting democracy. When Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice appeared in Hyde’s House International Relations Committee on Feb. 16, 2006, she presented written testimony touting Bush’s messianic policy. “In … Read more
The Overhyped Defense Cuts
Politicians often rail against government spending, except when it goes to the military. Conservatives believe there is no such thing as too much defense spending, and liberals don’t argue, for fear of being labeled appeasers. So when there is talk of the two parties agreeing to cut the Pentagon budget, it sounds like a monumental … Read more
NATO is Obsolete
Defense Secretary Robert Gates went to Europe recently to announce that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization may have a “dismal future” and that before long, American leaders “may not consider the return on America’s investment in NATO worth the cost.” Why does he make that sound like a bad thing? “Watch out! We may … Read more
Obama and the Pursuit of Endless War
When historians sit down decades from now to address the events of the early 21st century, they will have no trouble explaining why Americans elected Barack Obama president. They elected him out of a firm conviction that the United States was not involved in enough wars. Problem solved. Today, American forces are fighting in four … Read more
India, Pakistan, and Unintended Consequences
When you get into discussions about the Middle East with certain people, you start hearing that the great mistake was the partition of Palestine and the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. If that had somehow just not happened, you hear, everything would be all right. That’s not my view. I think the … Read more
Second-Guessing the President on Egypt
So here we are, the day we started referring to “Former president Hosni Mubarak,” and I can’t help feeling, with my 20/20 hindsight, that maybe our own president didn’t play things all so well. Truthfully, I haven’t felt very confident in our foreign policy throughout this entire struggle. I was frankly surprised at the loudly … Read more
What’s the Tea Party’s foreign policy?
Does the Tea Party have a foreign policy? P. J. O’Rourke explores the question in a recent World Affairs article. He begins by saying that it’s difficult to answer because first of all, there is no Tea Party: …There are, of course, any number of Tea Party Coalition groups across the country. But these mix … Read more
Does our foreign policy have a “God Gap”?
Now this is interesting: American foreign policy is handicapped by a narrow, ill-informed and “uncompromising Western secularism” that feeds religious extremism, threatens traditional cultures and fails to encourage religious groups that promote peace and human rights, according to a two-year study by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. The council’s 32-member task force, which included … Read more
Saber rattling at Iran, the progressive heaven of Detroit, and Minas Tirith in cake.
Iran appears to be moving toward a full-scale revolution. If you want to follow the unfolding events, Andrew Sullivan remains the best media source for first-hand reports and video. And Stephen Walt makes an important point at Foreign Policy: [T]his is an especially foolish time to be rattling sabers and threatening military action. Threatening or … Read more
Senator Brownback on the Case for John McCain
Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) is the leading pro-life Catholic in the Senate. After withdrawing from the race for the GOP presidential nomination, he endorsed Senator John McCain (R-AZ). His choice of McCain surprised some of Brownback’s supporters, so I asked him about his endorsement. ♦ ♦ ♦ Deal W. Hudson: Some people were surprised when … Read more