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American Foreign Policy after Iraq

Given the ongoing and intense controversy in the United States over the Iraq war and a draw-down of American forces from that country’s turmoil, it may seem premature at this time to think of any foreign policy “after” Iraq, but increasingly we will see evidence of such thinking in the debate on how to end this conflict. America’s greatest strength is its optimism, even at the lowest points of public despair. Questions are even now being raised, as the 2008 presidential campaign becomes the center of national attention, about basic foreign policy issues for the future, despite the pessimism surrounding American conduct in Iraq. These broader issues concern a fundamental problem: what is right for the American people in foreign policy? From basic tenets of national interest and rule of law flow four important topics that any intelligent citizen — not only academics and government officials — must confront in light of the US experience in Iraq and in the wider war on terrorism since 9/11. First, there are not only American objectives in the world but American limitations as well. Second, any ideology of power — left, right, or center — must be compatible with America’s traditions of lawful conduct of government. Third, wider civilizational values of robust citizenship, natural law, and cosmopolitan inclusiveness, each with its origins in classical Greece, invariably prove necessary to support any tradition of responsible government in foreign as well as domestic policy. And fourth, any doctrine of national interest must be consistent, rather than in conflict, with an idealistic worldview. A discussion of each topic will illustrate some of the issues that should receive attention in the course of this debate on the fundamentals of future American foreign policy.