Two Lifelong Republicans Turn Blue-And Speak Out

February 7, 2008

Two Lifelong Republicans Turn Blue-And Speak Out

Prominent foreign-policy expert Susan Eisenhower, a lifelong Republican and the granddaughter of Ike, is now supporting Barack Obama. http://www.nationalint

Are you frustrated there has not been more debate among the Republican candidates on these issues?

I think there has been a lot of debate; they're up on the televisions practically every night. But it is possible to just talk past one another and that's what seems to be happening. In the end, a key requirement for the Republicans is to figure out how to position themselves for the future. There are important trends emerging that make the United States and the global community entirely different places then they once were. I don't think either party has adequately picked up on these changes. Above all, America's standing in the world is different. From listening to these debates, it sounds like we're still in 1999. A lot has happened since then. And even more has happened since 2003.

The Republican Party has remained reactive. Most of the ideas being intoned are based on fear and playing at rear-guard action. There's a great deal of finger-pointing and blame. Thinking in these negative restrictive ways won't get us anywhere.

Are we now dealing with the legacy of the Iraq War? Was it a mistake?

I was against going into Iraq from the beginning. Afghanistan was already a difficult enough task. And it, at least, was directly connected to 9/11. A successful execution of the intervention in Afghanistan would have been an enormous boon. But many in Washington didn't understand the limits of our capabilities. And our model for rebuilding Iraq isn't working. We aren't instituting a Marshall Plan where we finance efforts but the societies rebuild for themselves. And the model we are using in Iraq isn't working. It may have been a fundamental mistake to go into Iraq, but now the questions are what to do now and how to learn from our mistakes rather than constantly reverting to the blame game.

So, then, are you disappointed in the debate between the Republican candidates on Iraq?

There is always a fine line between admitting mistakes and revealing vulnerabilities. I think it's been very difficult for the candidates to address this issue. But I'm not terribly happy about how it's been debated by either side. This is just another example of an issue that's been charged with emotion and in which we're residing in the past. The invasion was five years ago. Now we need to figure out how to bring the international community back to this issue rather than just finger-pointing. And I think Obama will be able to do priceless things for our image abroad. His election would send the message that the United States can still serve as an inspiration. It would make the rest of the world question what they think they know about us. It would make them question their negative stereotypes. Barack Obama is not a divisive figure and I think he could get us out of this highly politicized environment both at home and abroad. Without that, we could well be squandering the future of this country.

 

Justine A. Rosenthal is the executive editor of The National Interest.