Albright’s Malign Legacy Is EverywhereAs the nation’s top diplomat, Madeleine Albright did not really do diplomacy. She proclaimed America’s power and right to do as it pleased.
By Christopher Roach
April 3, 2022
Madeleine Albright died last week. She leaves an undisputed legacy as the first female secretary of state, but her impact goes beyond this historic achievement. She was also the architect, along with President Bill Clinton, of the post-Cold War consensus on U.S. foreign policy, which may be described as muscular idealism.
The world had changed considerably before and during Clinton’s first term. The Soviet Union had disbanded. Germany had reunited. As a consequence, the U.S. military was shrinking considerably, turning budget deficits into surpluses. Yet even with this “peace dividend,” America stood atop the world as the undisputed and sole superpower.
There were a host of new problems created by the end of the dual superpower equilibrium. Islamic terrorism grew worse as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict dragged on and the Taliban replaced the former Soviet client state in Afghanistan. Iraq labored under sanctions, arms inspections, and no-fly zones, which proved controversial with the far Left of the Democratic Party. At the same time, China began to grow stronger as it became a manufacturing powerhouse, fueled by Western capital and “most favored nation” trading status.
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Source:
https://amgreatness.com/2022/04/03/albrights-malign-legacy-is-everywhere/
