The Council on Foreign Relations has launched its very first weblog, The Candidates and the World, which aims to track the campaign through the prism of foreign policy, trade, international economics, and national and homeland security issues out on the stump on a daily basis.
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“By January 2013, America has welcomed home most of the servicemen and women who have sacrificed terribly so that America might be secure in her freedom. The Iraq War has been won. Iraq is a functioning democracy, although still suffering from the lingering effects of decades of tyranny and centuries of sectarian tension. Violence still occurs, but it is spasmodic and much reduced. Civil war has been prevented; militias disbanded; the Iraqi Security Force is professional and competent; al Qaeda in Iraq has been defeated; and the Government of Iraq is capable of imposing its authority in every province of Iraq and defending the integrity of its borders. The United States maintains a military presence there, but a much smaller one, and it does not play a direct combat role.”
–Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), on what he would like Iraq to look like by the end of his first presidential term in 2013.
In a speech on Thursday, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) laid out his vision for the United States by 2013, which could be the end of his first term in the presidency. He said he expects Iraq to be a “functioning democracy” by then. He also predicted that a “League of Democracies” will have been established and will have pressured Sudan to stop what U.S. officials have termed as genocide in Darfur.
Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) responded critically to McCain’s speech. Read her statement here.
A new series of CFR.org Backgrounders profiles the main foreign policy advisers for Clinton, Sen. Barack Obama, (D-IL) and McCain.
Posted on Thursday, May 15th, 2008 by campaign2008
Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) released a plan (PDF) to strengthen domestic manufacturing Wednesday. The plan includes the creation of a $150 billion Clean Technologies Deployment Venture Capital Fund, which would “advance clean energy and create green manufacturing jobs in the United States.” He also reiterated his commitment to “crack down” on Chinese market manipulation.
A report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities concludes that a cap-and-trade system that auctions carbon allowances would allow the government to “reduce greenhouse-gas emissions in a way that does not increase poverty or otherwise harm low-income households and is fiscally responsible.” Obama, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY), and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) all have climate change policy plans that include auctioning carbon permits.
An amendment backed by McCain (R-AZ) that would give veterans additional assistance for higher education was blocked in Senate on Wednesday, the Hill reports.
Posted on Wednesday, May 14th, 2008 by campaign2008
Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) won the West Virginia primary by a wide margin Tuesday night, taking 67 percent of the vote over Sen. Barack Obama’s 26 percent. According to preliminary CNN exit polls, 65 percent of West Virginia voters named the economy as the most important issue facing the country. 17 percent listed Iraq.
Both Democratic candidates returned to Washington on Tuesday to vote to stop stockpiling oil (NYT) in the U.S. strategic petroleum reserve. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) did not attend the vote.
A new series of CFR.org Backgrounders profiles the main foreign policy advisers for Clinton, Obama, and McCain.
Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) issued a statement saying the United States must convey to Myanmar’s leaders that the international community “will hold them responsible” if they prevent aid from reaching those in need.
Israel: In an interview with the Atlantic published Monday, Obama said the idea of a Jewish state is “fundamentally just,” and said his position on Hamas is “indistinguishable” from the positions of his opponents.
“In my approach to global climate-control efforts, we will apply the principle of equal treatment. We will apply the same environmental standards to industries in China, India, and elsewhere that we apply to our own industries. And if industrializing countries seek an economic advantage by evading those standards, I would work with the European Union and other like-minded governments that plan to address the global warming problem to develop effective diplomacy, effect a transfer of technology, or other means to engage those countries that decline to enact a similar cap.”
–Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), in a speech Monday on climate change policy.
In statements over the weekend, Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) and Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) both expressed concern over the situation in Lebanon. Clinton said the United States should “support the sovereignty of the Lebanese government and the independence of Lebanon.”
Obama condemned Hezbollah’s “power grab” and said the United States should engage in a diplomatic push for electoral reform, “an end to the current corrupt patronage system, and the development of the economy that provides for a fair distribution of services, opportunities and employment.”
Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) released a new ad, with Spanish subtitles, that focuses on his plan to help Latino small business owners. The plan includes what he calls “pro-innovation immigration policies.” No other details of the plan were immediately available.
In a statement Thursday, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) responded to a USA Today report that said recently released Pentagon records indicate tens of thousands of troops deemed medically unfit for combat have been sent to Iraq or Afghanistan since 2003. As president, Clinton said, she would “not send a single soldier into combat who is not medically fit.” She also promised that “for every month our soldiers spend in the field, they will be guaranteed one month here at home” if she is elected.
In a statement on Wednesday, Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) congratulated Israel on its 60th Independence Day. “The United States will always stand with Israel to ensure it can defend itself against threat of terrorism and violence, from as close as Gaza and as far as Tehran,” Obama said.
Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) criticized the governments of China, Iran, Myanmar, Sudan, North Korea and Saudi Arabia for religious repression and promised to make religious freedom “a subject of great importance” in his foreign policy as president. He also pledged to create an inter-agency task force to combat human trafficking (CNN).
Posted on Wednesday, May 7th, 2008 by campaign2008
“I sincerely hope the beginning of the Medvedev presidency will also be the beginning of a new era for Russia and for U.S.- Russian relations…Americans and Russians share a common interest in a prosperous global economy and mutually beneficial free trade. We share common interests in addressing climate change, the careful use of our natural resources and countering radical Islamic extremism. And we share a common interest in non-proliferation and nuclear arms reduction. The United States needs to work hard to forge a productive relationship with the government and the people of Russia in these areas.”
–Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), in a statement Wednesday on the inauguration of new Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
