Foreign Policy Two-Step

Huckabee is not ready for the big chair

Editor's Note: Thomas's commentary is in blue and Marcie's is in purple.

We really wish that he was better than anticipated, but the simple truth of the matter is that Mike Huckabee is simply not ready for prime time. We could go over his missteps and gaffes with regard to his record, but that isn't what will ultimately do him in. See, the Presidential election of 2008 will be the most important one since the beginning of the new millennium because of what is currently going on around the world. We are still at war, and because of that we will need a president who not only understands the gravity of the conflict, but also one that understands what our foreign policy should be. We have allies, and they like us a great deal, and not just for the money they receive in terms of foreign aid, but also in terms of the military assistance we are willing to offer -- at a moment's notice -- should disaster befall them. But a recent speech that Mike Huckabee gave to the Center for Strategic and International Studies shows that he knows and understands little about foreign policy.

Exhibit A -- Bunker Mentality

Mike Huckabee accused the Bush Administration of having an "arrogant bunker mentality." We could say that was true of the Administration had not actively sought diplomatic options in this war, but that is the furthest thing from the truth. In fact the Administration gave both the Taliban and Saddam Hussein chances to come clean, and both opted not to. In the case of Iran and North Korea, we worked with our allies to enhance existing sanctions. Solely in the case of North Korea, we brokered a deal with to end their nuclear weapons programs. If the Bush Administration had such an outlook on the world, we would be literally acting unilaterally, and we are not doing that. Furthermore, according to Mike Huckabee such a mentality has hurt our standing around the world. This is utter nonsense and it is the sort of throwaway line that one would expect from a Democrat firmly opposed to the policies of the last seven years.

Exhibit B -- The War

Mike Huckabee either hasn't been paying attention to this war, or he just likes tossing bombs. Like John Kerry did in 2004, Mike Huckabee refers to General Shinseki in a "see, I told you so" moment by again lambasting the current Administration over its narrow vision with regard to the amount of troops that should have been used in the Iraq invasion. He refers to the Powell Doctrine -- the use of overwhelming force -- but neglects to note that, in the end, General Colin Powell was either a dove, or was heavily influenced by the entrenched bureaucracy in the State Department. Furthermore, he states that Guantanamo Bay should be closed down. To him it is a "scar" on America; an albatross around our neck that the international community looks down on. Yet he fails to say where those detainees would end up. Granted, in earlier conversations, he seems content with having them sent to Fort Leavenworth, and he has even ignored current military commanders who say that such a move is a serious mistake. According to Mike Huckabee, if we were just a little nicer the world might like us more, and we might be able to accomplish more around the world. Sound familiar?

Exhibit C -- Iran

If ever there was a point where Mike Huckabee showed the most naivete this would be it. First he believes that if Iran is not stopped from building a nuclear weapon that it would spark an arms race of sorts with it's neighbors. That is woefully childlike. Iran would not spark such a race because they would threaten their neighbors with the nuclear weapons they would possess. It is called nuclear blackmail, and clearly the former governor misses this point. He states that we must intensify our diplomatic efforts with regard to Iran, and specifically with our supposed allies. Yet later in the speech he acknowledges that countries like China and Russia would not likely go along with more intense sanctions because of their trade connections with Iran. He is basically contradicting himself in this regard, and it shows his simplistic inexperience in this realm. Other than misquoting Sun-Tzu in his speech (the quote is attributed to Niccolo Machiavelli, for those interested) he compares talking with nations the same way one talks to a person. This is just plain ignorant. As the editors of National Review noted, "countries are not people, and the world is more dangerous than a Sunday church social."

Exhibit D -- A "contained" Iran

Continuing on this point, he states more than once that we can't live with al Qaeda, but we can live with a contained Iran. Oh yes, like the world is doing such a bang-up job in that respect. The regime in Tehran has thumbed it's nose at the United Nations. It told the European Union 3 -- France, Germany, and Great Britain -- to get stuffed in the negotiations over their uranium enrichment program. Carrot and stick diplomacy doesn't exactly seem to be on Iran's list of things to do. So, how exactly are we supposed to contain a nation that has basically given the world the middle finger? He doesn't say in his speech, other than ramping up more international pressure; pressure he admits will be difficult to obtain, to begin with, and wouldn't likely be forthcoming from some of our more necessary allies such as those with trade ties to Tehran. It sounds to us like he wants to revert to a "global test" of sorts where the world approves of what we do before we do anything. If they don't want us to do it, we won't. We can't play this sort of game with foreign policy because it'll end up getting us killed. Iran can't be contained unless you're going to do it the way President Reagan did with the Soviet Union, and given that Iran's number one weapon in a coming war would be oil, not too many nations are willing to cut off their nose to spite their face. Mike Huckabee's answer to that is investment in, and research of, alternative forms of fuel, which he claims can be done inside of eight years, which is a credulous thought on it's face.

Exhibit E -- Pakistan

This was perhaps the biggest gaffe he made in the whole speech. He accuses the Bush Administration of not having a Pakistan policy, but rather a Musharraf policy. This may indeed be the case, but we are walking a tightrope with Pakistan right now. As it stands now they are an ally. Governor Huckabee claims that this is out of convenience rather that the will needed to fight al-Qaeda and the Taliban. He rightly points out the deal struck between the Musharraf regime and the Taliban -- the one that caused many of the recent problems in Pakistan -- but fails to mention the fact that the Pakistani military has actively engaged these animals, and have driven them back to the region of South Waziristan. He also claims that when this war began President Musharraf had given us permission to engage Taliban forces in his country. Either Mike Huckabee tried to slip in a fib, or he has bad information because Pakistan has never allowed us to cross into their nation in pursuit of Taliban forces in cross-border raids until recently. Then he made the ultimate misstep in taking the Obama position that if Pakistan cannot keep it's house clean, we will invade and clean it up for them. How can anyone be this utterly naive? Invade an ally -- a nuclear-armed one at that -- when such an invasion could rapidly destabilize a nation already built on sand, which could lead to a nightmare scenario where Islamic radicals have a nuclear inventory under their thumbs.

Forget about his other ideas. Forget about his record as Governor. Forget about his supposed surge in the primary polls. Forget about all of that, and focus solely on his foreign policy ideas. We urge readers to read that speech. If you do, and you have as critical an eye as Marcie and I do you'll see the same thing we see: a man running for president that is just steps away from the ineptitude of Jimmy Carter. In fact more than a couple pundits have compared him to the former president, and not just in terms of his foreign policy ideas. But this is what matters most to us for the sheer fact that we refuse to table the war this election. It is the single most important issue for us because we can't afford to go back on defense. Defense is what helped deliver 11 September to our doorsteps in the first place, and Mike Huckabee seems to think that would be the best way to play the foreign policy game. Don't irritate our allies, kiss their feet, and whatever we do we can't act unilaterally. That's his way of going about things. It's wrong, and it's likely to do us more harm than good.

He is a scholar of history, especially American history, and the United States Constitution. She has finished her undergrad studies, graduating with a BA in English and history and will move onto law school this fall where she will specialize in Constitutional Law. Together, Thomas and Marcie form the vanguard of conservative opinion at Hamilton, Madison, and Jay -- a blogging site devoted to advancing the conservative cause by challenging the liberal lies and deceit spread by the media, and espoused by the Left in general. Both are expert debaters, and have beaten many liberals into submission with their collective wit, and unmatched knowledge. The pair is married, and resides in Arizona

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