RUTHFULLY YOURS

Time Magazine is already speculating about a Hillary Clinton presidential run in 2016, and there is chatter about Meryl Streep eventually playing the Secretary of State and former First Lady on the big screen. Mrs. Clinton is consistently outshining Barack Obama in the popularity polls, and has a loyal following on the American Left. But has all this attention gone to Mrs Clinton’s head? Her keynote address to the Time 100 gala in New York on Tuesday night was little more than a laundry list of her “achievements” in office, under the label of “smart power”. Here’s a snippet:

And when President Obama asked me to be Secretary of State, people were asking, “Is America still up to the job of leading in this rapidly changing world?” And we faced two wars, an economy in free-fall, diplomacy had been deemphasized, our traditional alliances were fraying, the international system the United States had helped to build and defend looked increasingly obsolete.

And it’s been more than three years now. By the time I finish next January, I guess I’ll have travelled a million miles, visited more than 100 countries. And I know a couple of things. One, the world remains a dangerous place, but I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished. We have integrated the three pillars of American foreign policy: diplomacy, development, and defense.

And we have worked hard to restore America’s standing, especially by repairing alliances and deepening relationships, and paying a lot of attention to the so-called rising powers. And also putting together coalitions to do things like protect civilians in Libya, or to try to, through pressure and sanctions, influence behavior in Iran. Putting people at the center of our foreign policy, especially those long pushed to the margins like women and young people, religious and ethnic minorities, the LGBT community, civil society. That was important because we want to make clear that America’s values of inclusivity and democracy, of fairness and equality of opportunity really were at the core of who we are and who we will be. So we determined to make innovation and partnerships the foundation of what we did.

Listening to Hillary Clinton, one is given the impression that the United States pre-Hillary and pre-Barack was an impoverished, isolated, reckless, friendless declining superpower, with a monumentally dumb approach to international affairs. But, according to the Clinton gospel, America is now an enlightened nation, supposedly rescued from ignorance and despair, and once again standing tall on the world stage. From a Presidency that has added $5 trillion to the national debt, weakened America’s defences, undermined US national sovereignty, and thrown key allies under the bus, while appeasing America’s enemies and strategic competitors, this was sheer arrogance.

Aside from sanctioning the successful operation to kill Osama bin Laden, in part the fruit of years of intelligence work by the Bush administration and the product of a counterterrorism strategy opposed by the Democrats, the Obama administration cannot point to a single major US-driven foreign policy success. Significantly, the much-touted NATO-led operation to remove Colonel Gaddafi from power last year was propelled largely by London and Paris, not by Washington, which chose to “lead from behind”, offering extensive military support but no clear leadership on the world stage.

The much-hyped Russian “reset” has been an abject failure, serving only to embolden the Russians while undermining confidence in the United States in eastern and central Europe following the surrender to Moscow over missile defence. Three years of US engagement with Iran has produced no dividends, while Tehran has crushed political protests and moved closer to becoming a nuclear-armed power. On Afghanistan, President Obama dithered for months before deciding on a surge strategy which was immediately undercut by the announcement of a timetable for withdrawal. And on the Arab spring, the Obama administration’s approach has been one of abject confusion, with Hillary Clinton initially offering her support to both Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, as well as Bashar al-Assad in Syria, whom she famously described as a “reformer” just a few months before he butchered thousands of his own people.

All this has combined with a sneering approach towards key US allies, including Great Britain and Israel. It should not be forgotten that Mrs Clinton has treated both countries at times with condescension, even going as far as siding with Argentina in calling for a negotiated settlement over the Falklands. Hillary Clinton has been no friend of the British or the Israelis during her time in office, and has displayed what can only be described as contempt for the Anglo-American relationship on the Falklands matter. Far from “deepening relationships”, the Obama administration has frequently strained them.

Despite all the mocking and derision from the Left, President George W Bush succeeded in liberating more than 50 million people from tyranny, won two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and launched a global battle against Islamist terrorism, while standing shoulder to shoulder with major allies. That is a list of achievements to be proud of, in marked contrast to the weakness and indecision of the past three years. Far from “restoring America’s standing”, Hillary Clinton and President Obama have weakened America’s position as the world’s superpower, and emboldened her enemies, from Moscow to Tehran. That is hardly a record to be boasting about.