Advice for President-Elect Obama: International Policy
As the latest in my ongoing series of posts advising President-Elect Obama, I’d like to approach international issues. This may be a moot point, since Obama already has many international ties. Regardless, I’ll try to hit some high points.
I won’t bother with advising on interactions with the palestinians, since Obama has ties to the palestinians; already. Likewise, he seems to have good ties with Kenya. Heck, some think Obama was born in Kenya, including his own grandmother who says she was in the hospital at the time.
I’d like to talk about some of the other international connections that need to be addressed.
Afghanistan
You’ve talked about increasing the efforts in Afghanistan. Since President Bush made a point of giving the military the resources they needed, it’s obvious that the military doesn’t know what they need. You’ll want to give them more.
The forces in Afghanistan at the moment include troops of many types. On the hunt for Bin Laden, for instance, we have many special forces working throughout the country. You’ll want to increase that number. This may extend deployments, cause a reduction in training, an increase in divorce rates, and a general lowering of effectiveness, but you can’t let that affect you. You made a campaign promise, and you have to keep it.
After all, if Bin Laden actually puts his head up out of his secure hideaway long enough to be seen, you might get lucky where Bush has not. If you can actually find him, you can take credit for doing something Bush couldn’t.
Capturing Bin Laden won’t actually do much to stop islamic terrorism in the long run, but it can be a feather in your own cap.
Iraq
It is very important that you continue the liberal story on Iraq. Repeatedly refer to Bush’s “lie” that Iraq was involved in the 9/11 attacks. Whatever you do, don’t tell the truth that Bush specifically said that there was no evidence of such involvement. Don’t let on that things have improved in Iraq so much that military vehicles no longer demand the right-of-way in the streets, but now follow the same traffic rules as the rest of society.
Keep telling the story that Iraqis don’t want us there. Don’t point out that the fighting against us is primarily by militants and terrorists that came to Iraq from other countries to fight both the US and the new Iraqi government. Since you’re determined that they don’t want us, and that we must pull out, it is VERY important that you avoid mentioning that the Iraqi government has asked us to stay at least 3 more years.
Keep selling Iraq as a failure. Keep saying it was based on a lie. Keep your story just as it is, and pull our troops out as fast as you can. When the foreign militants increase their efforts in the vacuum, you can point to it as an example of our failure, rather than a result of your own actions.
Don’t worry, your supporters won’t question you.
France
France has, in the past, opposed the multi-lateral actions that the US led in Iraq. When the US , Britain, and other countries acted in Iraq, France was vocal in standing against us. They painted our actions as unilateral (meaning we did it alone) and misguided. It is very important that you understand that France sees unilateral military action against enemies in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia as its own job. When we took action, it wasn’t so much that we did anything wrong, as it was stepping on their toes.
Things have changed now in France. The tide has changed a bit, and opposition to our actions has reduced. Sarkozy’s election was a natural outgrowth of this change. Part of this has been because of France’s own problems with militant Islam within their borders.
I left France for last, because it is the lynchpin of my foreign policy advice. In recent years, France’s support has been the key judgement on US foreign policy. You have to continue this trend. For that reason, I give you my #1 rule for your foreign policy.
France is the foremost promoter of US interests in the world. It is imperative that you listen to their advice, and get french approval for any actions taken outside our borders. If you don’t, then the Democrats will oppose you.
Oh wait… no they won’t. Who’ll tell them?
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