Strategic Assessment

Many theoreticians are wont to analyze international dealings as a function of either constraints and opportunities in the global system or fixed political interests, rather than a function of the influence of individual leaders. Delicately put, America’s foreign policy since September 2001 does not corroborate this approach. It is hard to imagine that had Al Gore been elected president, the US would have invaded Iraq. Similarly, the policy of Republican John McCain, if elected president, will in almost all certainty be significantly different from the policy of Democrat Barack Obama should he enter the White House. These candidates’ views about American foreign policy are significantly divergent, reflecting the difference between their respective parties.