WASHINGTON – Is Bernie Sanders a closet foreign policy “realist”? Reading his few pronouncements on foreign policy, you sense that he embraces the realists’ deep skepticism about American military intervention. But he has said so little about foreign policy that it’s hard to be sure.
Foreign policy is the hole in Sanders’ political donut. We know what he doesn’t like – the 2003 invasion of Iraq, which he mentions, in nearly every debate, almost robotically, describing it as “one of the worst foreign policy blunders in the modern history of the United States.” But there’s far less clarity about what he does favor.
David IgnatiusNow that Sanders has nearly tied Hillary Clinton in Iowa and won New Hampshire, there’s a real possibility that he may emerge as the Democratic nominee. And the question is: How scared should mainstream Democrats be about Sanders as a foreign policy president?
It’s hard to know. Sanders is running a populist campaign that centers on economic justice. Foreign policy is an afterthought. If I had to guess, I’d say that Sanders would continue – and reinforce – President Obama’s wary approach to using force, whereas Clinton would be more hawkish.
But that’s just a guess. Perhaps Sanders would be far more dovish. Clearly, if he wants to be taken seriously as his party’s potential nominee, Sanders needs to explain how he would behave as commander in chief. The nation is at war against a terrorist adversary. How would Sanders lead?