A Foreign Policy Conversation
Top foreign policy advisers to the presidential campaigns of Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL), Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY), and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) sat down at the Council on Foreign Relations on Friday to discuss their candidates’ global policies. At times the rhetoric of the Clinton-Obama contest spilled over into the discussion involving Clinton adviser Mara Rudman and Obama adviser Susan Rice. McCain adviser Randy Scheunemann sparred gently with each of them on issues ranging from NATO expansion to NAFTA.
A transcript of the discussion can be viewed here. Here’s a rundown of a few main issues discussed:
NAFTA and Trade: Rice and Rudman repeated calls for a fresh look at U.S. trade deals, with Rice reiterating the need for NAFTA to be “amended” to address labor and environmental conditions. They clashed on the issue of Obama’s sincerity as a fair trader, continuing the dispute that took place before the Ohio and Texas primaries in which Clinton aides alleged Obama economic adviser Austan Goolsbee privately assured Canadian officials that he does not really intend to alter NAFTA. Rice repeated denials, saying Canadian officials have affirmed that Goolsbee’s comments were consistent with the campaign position on NAFTA. Scheunemann dismissed talk of reopening trade agreements, especially ones like NAFTA negotiated with bipartisan support. He jokingly questioned which party was guilty of “cowboy diplomacy.”
Pakistan: Rice said the recent election results that went against Islamic fundamentalists as well as President Pervez Musharraf offered an opportunity for the United States to demonstrate support for democratic forces and civil society in Pakistan. Rudman said Clinton was pleased at the results and was eager for the U.S. to strengthen economic and democratic conditions in Pakistan. She also pointed to Clinton’s call a year ago to appoint a special U.S. envoy to deal with Pakistan’s political crisis. Scheunemann noted the two Pakistani parties that scored well in the elections had previously headed up governments with weak track records. He raised questions about their ability to pursue al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups based on Pakistani soil.
Middle East: A questioner evoked the “3 a.m. phone call” ads of the Clinton campaign to ask how the candidates would handle a late-breaking crisis involved an Israeli invasion of Gaza. All three advisers supported Israel’s right to defend itself against attacks from Hamas forces based in Gaza. Rice said a prolonged Israeli occupation would complicate the peace process underway and an Obama administration would try to ensure talks could be resumed as quickly as possible. Rudman called for more vigorous U.S. diplomacy in the region to head off the likelihood of an Israeli invasion and make sure “Hamas and the extremists are not controlling the debate.” She stressed that Clinton did not support negotiations with Hamas. Scheunemann called for Arab governments to do more to try to improve the situation in Gaza, both in humanitarian terms and to help avoid further conflict between Gaza-based forces and Israel.
Climate change: Asked about how candidates’ climate proposals differ from current proposals in Congress, Rice said Obama proposes capping greenhouse gas emissions at a 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. Obama’s plan, she said, would require emissions permits to be auctioned, “so that the polluter pays.” Scheunemann emphasized that McCain’s approach was market based, focusing on an “entrepreneurial spirit” rather than a centrally based government approach that taxes companies. Climate legislation McCain sponsored with Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-CT) would have put a mandatory cap on the amount of greenhouse gas emissions from the U.S. electricity generation, transportation, industrial, and commercial sectors. Rudman said she was not well briefed on the issue and couldn’t provide an answer.
