The New President’s Foreign Policy - The Debate
Linked below are all four installments of a four-part report from Stratfor founder and Chief Intelligence Officer, George Friedman, on the United States Presidential Debate on Foreign Policy held September 26, 2008.
On Friday night, every government intelligence agency in the world was glued to television sets watching the US Presidential Debate on foreign policy. Government intelligence agencies are not rooting for one candidate or the other, nor are they trying to call the “winner” of the debate - or even ultimately the election.
A government intelligence agency’s goal is to provide national policy makers an unbiased analysis of contingencies. In this instance, they’re attempting to answer two questions, “What will US foreign policy look like under an Obama or McCain administration? And how will that impact our country?”
Stratfor is a private-sector, independent intelligence service and approaches the debates from a similar perspective. They have zero preference for one candidate or the other, but are passionately interested in analyzing and forecasting the geopolitical impact of the election.
The essence of Stratfor’s business is non-partisan, dispassionate analysis and forecasting. For individuals in today’s global world - oil traders and missionaries, soldiers and equity analysts, educators and travelers - Stratfor provides the intelligence analysis that has long been exclusively available to governments.
All four installments are linked here:
Click here to read the first installment - Part 1 - “The New President and the Global Landscape.”
This introductory piece frames the questions that the next president will face. Regardless of a given candidate’s policy preferences, there are logistical and geographical constraints that shape US and foreign options. The purpose of this analysis is to describe the geopolitical landscape for the next administration. The analysis concludes with a list of questions for the debate that define the parameters facing both candidates.
Click here to read the second installment - Part 2 - Obama’s Foreign Policy Stance
Senator Obama has issued position papers and made statements about his intended foreign policy. Like all Presidents, he would also be getting input from a variety of others, principally from his own party. This second analysis analyzes the foreign policy position of Sen. Obama and the Democratic Party.
Click here to read the third installment - Part 3 - McCain’s Foreign Policy Stance
Senator McCain has issued position papers and made statements about his intended foreign policy. Like all Presidents, he would also be getting input from a variety of others, principally from his own party. This second analysis analyzes the foreign policy position of Sen. McCain and the Republican Party.
Click here to read the fourth installment - Part 4 - George Friedman on the Presidential Debate
The final installment in this series was produced after the debate. This is NOT an effort to call a “winner” or “loser.” That’s for pundits, not an intelligence service. This is an analysis of the candidates’ statements and positions.
Part 1 - The New President and the Global Landscape
Part 2 - Obama’s Foreign Policy Stance
Part 3 - McCain’s Foreign Policy Stance
Part 4 - George Friedman on the Presidential Debate
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