Barack Obama spelled out his vision for U.S. foreign policy in South Dakota today.
Well I want to be perfectly clear with George Bush and John McCain – if they want a debate about protecting the United States of America, that’s a debate I’m ready to win, because George Bush and John McCain have a lot to answer for.
“…in the Bush-McCain worldview, everyone who disagrees with their failed Iran policy is an appeaser. And back during his “No Surrender” tour, John McCain said anyone who wants to end the war in Iraq responsibly wants to surrender; he even said later on that he would be ok keeping troops in Iraq for 100 years, but yesterday he said our troops could be home by 2013. He offered the promise that America will win a victory, with no understanding that Iraq is fighting a civil war. Just like George Bush, his plan isn’t about winning, it’s about staying, and that’s why there will be a clear choice in November: fighting a war without end, or ending this war. Because we don’t need John McCain’s prediction about when the war will end – we need a plan to end it.
What Obama says makes perfect sense to me. He calls out Bush-McCain as fear-mongerers with naive and destructive versions of foreign policy. Iraq, Iran, the Palestinian Territories and North Korea are Exhibits A, B, C and D.
Obama invites McCain to an open debate on foreign policy. He even savors that opportunity and so do I.