Read a Pacific Northwest, liberal perspective on world, national, and local politics. From majestic Redmond, Washington - the Northwest Progressive Institute Advocate.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Colin Powell, Barack Obama, and Darcy Burner on foreign policy.

Although Colin Powell is not personally on the ballot anywhere in the United States right now, if you like his foreign policy positions and you live in Washington's 8th Congressional District, you have two chances to vote for them on November 4th.

Amid the excitement and buzz about Colin Powell's endorsement of Obama yesterday, this little bit from MSNBC's story caught my eye:

Powell said a major part of his decision to turn his back on his own party was his conclusion that Obama was the better option to repair frayed U.S. relations with allies overseas.


“This is the time for outreach,” Powell said, saying the next president would have to “reach out and show the world there is a new administration that is willing to reach
out.”


In particular, he said, he welcomed Obama’s president to “talk to people we haven’t talked to,” a reference to Obama’s controversial statement that he would be open to direct diplomacy with Iranian leaders.


“I think that [Obama] has a definite way of doing business that will serve us well,” Powell said.


So, of course, you can support Powell's foreign policy goals by voting for Barack Obama. But you can cast a second vote in support of international consensus-building by voting for Darcy Burner.

If you watched or listened to either of her debates with Dave Reichert a couple of weeks ago, or if you read the liveblog coverage, Darcy's clear and strong stance was identical to what Powell expressed yesterday:

A go it-alone foreign policy doesn't work. We have to work with our allies and friends to solve problems.

This is something that progressives across the board have been arguing ever since 2003 and the runup to the Iraq war. The Bush Doctrine of "whoever I want to invade, whenever I want to do it, and nevermind what anybody else thinks" is flawed to its core. The Bush Doctrine costs us allies and earns for us animosity and resentment wherever we go.

The Bush Doctrine does everything imaginable to make it easier for people across the world to hate America and Americans.

Osama Bin Laden must surely view the Bush Doctrine as a flat-out gift from Allah, a sign from above that Allah wants Bin Laden's terrorist agenda to continue. Because the Bush Doctrine and its all-too-predictable ripple effects make it worlds easier to recruit new members to Al Qaida.

I know this. Darcy Burner knows this. Barack Obama knows this. And yesterday, none other than Colin Powell spoke up on the national stage to say Enough! This policy is broken, it is causing worlds of harm to America for no real benefit, and it must stop.

Anyone who wants to see America's standing in the world improve, and who wants to start addressing the real cause of terrorism, has two chances in November to vote for something better. One vote for Barack Obama, and one vote for Darcy Burner.

Comments:

Blogger Curious Texan said...

I wasn't sure what General Powell meant by "transformational," so I did a little research on the subject and found this excellent synopsis of Transformational Leadership.

Towards the end of the article is this interesting tidbit:

"One of the traps of Transformational Leadership is that passion and confidence can easily be mistaken for truth and reality. Whilst it is true that great things have been achieved through enthusiastic leadership, it is also true that many passionate people have led the charge right over the cliff and into a bottomless chasm. Just because someone believes they are right, it does not mean they are right."

Given the full meaning of transformational leadership, I would have to agree with General Powell that Barack Obama would be a transformational president.

October 20, 2008 10:57 AM  
Blogger Nick said...

Honestly, I've had enough of the election. I know who I'm going to vote for and endorsements and commercials aren't going to change my mind.

The economy is going to keep sliding until this election is decided. The current president, has failed to offer any meaningful leadership that would get us out of this economic mess. So, I suspect that when a new president is elected, the public will have a better sense of where the country is going.

No matter who is elected, he needs to take decisive action to repair the economy. I signed this petition to the 44th prsident.

http://friendsoftheuschamber.com/email/44_email.html

The message is clear -- we need you to lead us out of this economic mess.

October 20, 2008 11:37 AM  

Post a Comment

<< Home