The Biden Doctrines
By HENRY R. NAU
December 21, 2023 3:44 PM
A mix of approaches has confused the president’s foreign policy
Does President Biden have a foreign policy? And if he does, how does it compare with those of his predecessors?
We can assess foreign-policy differences by looking at the choices presidents make in response to two sets of questions. First, what primary objective should America pursue? Should it maintain a geopolitical balance of power that promotes stability, taking a live-and-let-live attitude toward values (as in the Nixon-Kissinger willingness to coexist with the totalitarian Soviet Union)? Or should it emphasize democratic values and alliances to defend and spread open societies, since democratic nations tend to live in peace with one another (e.g., Reagan’s “we win, they lose” approach to the USSR)?
Second, what means should the United States employ? Should it rely primarily on military and economic power to defend national interests and avoid diplomatic entanglements (Trump’s “America First” policy)? Or should it promote arms control and use military force only with multilateral consent (like George H. W. Bush in the Persian Gulf War)?
Combined, the two choices make possible four overall approaches — strategic restraint (restrained balance of power plus reluctance to use arms), globalist diplomacy (democratic values plus reluctance to use arms), great-power politics (activist balance of power plus willingness to use arms), and defending/promoting democracy (democratic values plus willingness to use arms). Presidents choose aspects of all these approaches; none is fully sufficient. But there is usually an emphasis.
https://www.nationalreview.com/magazine/2024/02/the-biden-doctrines/?bypass_key=VGExdm1ua1NHdFFHNldlOHlacGpiUT09OjpWRXBRZEV4MFJXTkhSM2hOWWpablMyTm9lVUpZVVQwOQ%3D%3D
