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As a candidate, Barack Obama promised big on foreign policy and what he could achieve. As president for three years, President Obama failed to deliver. From Israel to Guantanamo Bay, Obama said one thing but did another.

Israel:

In 2008, Obama Said That He Would Maintain “An Unwavering Friendship With Israel, And An Unshakeable Commitment To Its Security.” “That is the change we need in our foreign policy. Change that restores American power and influence. Change accompanied by a pledge that I will make known to allies and adversaries alike: that America maintains an unwavering friendship with Israel, and an unshakeable commitment to its security.” (Barack Obama, Remarks To AIPAC, Washington, D.C. 6/4/08)

Obama Spoke In May 2011 Calling For Israel To Withdraw To The 1967 Borders For A Two State Solution. “Forcefully stepping into an explosive Middle East debate, President Barack Obama on Thursday endorsed a key Palestinian demand for the borders of its future state and prodded ... more

On the same day Reuters reported Iran may be capable of arming a missile capable of hitting the U.S. by 2015, The Washington Post’s editorial board has declared the Obama Administration completely “Confused On Iran”:

[T]he public signs of the administration's squishiness about military options are worrisome because of the lack of progress on its two-track strategy of offering negotiations and threatening sanctions. A year-long attempt at engagement failed; now the push for sanctions is proceeding at a snail's pace.

Though President Obama claims all options are on the table when it comes to dealing with Iran, the paths left open to the administration continue to dwindle.  As the editorial board goes on to note, “the administration has so far shrunk from supporting sanctions, such as a gasoline embargo, that might heighten popular anger against the regime.”  Even using the military option as an intimidation tactic seems to be off the table.

With the growing specter of a nuclear Iran, ... more

Today, President Obama will meet with his Sudan Special Envoy Scott Gration in the White House to discuss the recent elections in the Sudan that Gration hailed as being “as free and fair as possible” only a couple weeks ago – ignoring the fact that the Bashir regime “threatened to cut off the fingers and tongues of election observers.”  Human rights group Enough Project had a very different take on the elections:

[T]he administration almost always characterizes the credibility of these elections in relative terms only. By calling for an election that is “as free and fair as possible” without clearly defining the minimum standards that need to be met, the US government is sending an implicit message to Khartoum that it can manipulate these elections and still secure international legitimacy for the results… it is increasingly clear that Khartoum believes that the Obama administration will endorse a rigged election.

This is the same violent and oppressive government that Obama ... more

Despite a letter from 76 senators condemning the use of harsh rhetoric against our long time ally, Israel, Obama’s Secretary of State Hillary Clinton continued to set forth new demands on the Israeli government last night. AFP reports:

The United States called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to prove his commitment to a Palestinian state, warning that prolonged conflict only strengthened extremists... Clinton was forthright in her demands of Netanyahu, urging Israel to "refrain from unilateral statements and actions" that could undermine peace.

Never mind the fact that “Mr. Netanyahu already has made a couple of concessions in the past year, including declaring a partial moratorium on settlements,” as The Washington Post’s editorial board wrote last month. Furthermore:

American chastising of Israel invariably prompts still harsher rhetoric, and elevated demands, from Palestinian and other Arab leaders. Rather than join peace talks, Palestinians will now wait to see ... more

That is how President Obama feels about America having the most powerful military in the world – a force of good ensuring stability and peace throughout the globe. According to President Obama, “whether we like it or not, we remain a dominant military superpower.”

Unfortunately, we could have guessed as much, as a quick review of the president’s actions gives us a good idea about his feelings on America’s position as a global superpower. President Obama:

• Proposed slashing billions from defense spending in 2009
• Scrapped an important missile defense program in Europe designed specifically to counter missiles from Iran and North Korea
• And continues to sacrifice America’s nuclear deterrence capabilities for the purpose of inspiring rogue regimes to do the same.

And when it comes to allies, President Obama’s “whether we like it or not” attitude has led to public sparring with longtime friends. Under President Obama, relations with Israel are “uneasy,” India is annoyed, ... more

As we pointed out yesterday, the Obama administration appears to be under the delusion that they’re making progress on international sanction on Iran, even though the reality is that they have not been able to rally world leaders around those sanctions. And today The Los Angeles Times is reporting on China’s most recent evasion of the Obama administration’s claims of consensus:

China insisted Tuesday that it has not shifted its approach on Iran's nuclear program, despite White House claims on Monday that Beijing had become more open to sanctions on Tehran…  Jiang Yu, a spokeswoman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, told reporters in Beijing that "China has always believed that sanctions and pressure cannot fundamentally resolve the issue" of concern about Iran's nuclear program, according to the official New China News Agency.

The likelihood of China supporting any sort of economic sanctions with Iran is close to nil as the two states are closely tied economically.  In fact, China’s ... more

Is the Obama administration making any progress on getting other countries to sign on to sanction Iran? They seem to think so. After President Obama’s meeting yesterday with the Chinese delegation, the White House is claiming that it’s achieved a huge diplomatic success, with National Security Council Senior Director for Asian Affairs Jeffrey A. Bader calling the meeting "another sign of international unity” on the issue of sanctions on Iran.  

Yet, it appears the administration and the Chinese still do not see eye to eye on the issue, as AFP reports “China said Tuesday that sanctions were not the answer to the stand-off over Iran's nuclear program.” According to Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu:

"China always believes that dialogue and negotiation are the best way out for the issue. Pressure and sanctions cannot fundamentally solve it.”

Of course, this is not the first time the Obama administration displayed its naivete and cluelessness when it comes to international ... more

This morning, The Washington Post’s editorial page editor Fred Hiatt posed a simple question:

In a world of dangerously failed states and willful challengers to American leadership, South Korea is an astoundingly successful democracy that wants to be friends. But will America say yes? …

The two nations have signed a free-trade agreement that [South Korean President Lee Myung-bak] believes would -- in addition to bringing obvious economic benefit to both sides -- seal a crucial alliance and promote stability throughout Northeast Asia. But President Obama has yet to submit the agreement to Congress for ratification or say when he might do so.

President Obama has been in office for 14 months, and despite his regular lip service for free trade, his administration continues to stall any movement toward job creating trade agreements – including this important agreement with longtime ally South Korea.  So why, after promising to pivot towards jobs, would the Obama administration not be ... more

Secretary Of State Hillary Clinton rebranded the Obama administration’s failed approach to Iran this morning on NBC’s “Meet The Press”:

[W]hat we have found over the last months because of our strategic patience and our willingness to keep on this issue is countries are finally saying, I kind of get it, I get it they didn't cooperate, they're the ones that shut the door and now we have to do something.

Unfortunately, President Obama’s “strategic patience” has yielded no results, and as Secretary Clinton noted in December, the Obama administration approach to Iran was an utter failure. Meanwhile, Iran continues its dangerous path towards nuclear weapons as the Obama administration seeks to water down sanctions by carving out special exceptions to placate China’s continued objection. President Obama naively believed he could charm the Iranian regime – yet fourteen months later, as the German newspaper Der Spiegel notes, he has achieved zero results.       

He set out to negotiate ... more

President Obama is touting today the signing of the renewed START treaty with Russia as an important milestone for “nuclear security and nonproliferation, and for U.S.-Russia relations” and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev hailed the occasion as “historic.”  However, a closer look at the treaty reveals that this is not the case. 

This morning on MSNBC, NYU Russian Studies Professor Stephen Cohen said anyone who considered the agreement historic must be suffering from “historical amnesia” as this treaty “doesn’t amount to much.”  He also pointed out the “ticking time bomb” within the treaty, which is the disagreement over the language concerning missile defense systems which essentially allows Russia to veto any expansion of our missile defense shield.  In fact, it is very hard to see what benefits the United States will derive from this treaty. 

In sharp contrast, President Bush’s “landmark” 123 Nuclear Agreement with India represented a forward looking approach designed to ally ... more