Asked by Mirvet S Muca, Ph.D, from Naugatuck Valley Comm. College
The conventional wisdom has it that second-term presidents, freed from the need to win another election, tend to be bolder in their initiatives. While that logic may apply to President Obama's domestic policy, it is unlikely to extend abroad.
This meeting is part of a series hosted with the National History Center featuring prominent historians who will examine the events and times that shaped foreign policy as we know it today.
In President Obama's upcoming counterterrorism speech, Robert Chesney and Matthew Waxman explain that the president should focus on three areas that his administration has not followed through in a serious way: closing Guantanamo, working with Congress to put forceful counterterrorism actions on sound legal footing, and making targeted killing more transparent.
Asked by Adepoju Adeola Praise, from Eastern Mediterranean University
The League of Nations was championed by President Woodrow Wilson in a fourteen-point speech to a joint session of Congress on January 8, 1918, and formally began its operations in January 1920. However, the League failed to win Senate approval and is forever remembered as a major example of a communications breakdown between the president and the Senate.
Peter Orszag argues that switching to the chained consumer price index for calculating Social Security cost-of-living adjustments will not make as much of a difference as many seem to think.
Michael A. Levi, CFR's David M. Rubenstein senior fellow for energy and the environment, and director of the program on energy security and climate change, leads a conversation on President Obama's climate change policies.
"The U.S., by what it does and how it does it, ought to set and reinforce a norm that the use of armed drones should be exceptional," argues Richard N. Haass.
Isobel Coleman says that while President Obama's State of the Union address focused on domestic policies, unpredictable events in the rest of the world are unlikely to allow his second administration to stay above the fray in its foreign policy.
Micah Zenko says, "Most analysts and journalists have focused on President Obama's expanded scope, intensity, and institutionalization of targeted killings against suspected terrorists and militants. However, perhaps the enduring legacy of the Obama administration will be its sustained, rigorous effort to shape and define-down the idea of war."
In order to gain more congressional support for national security and foreign policy measures, "The Obama administration will need to pick its legislative priorities more deliberately, engage with allies and opponents in Congress more actively, and be willing to negotiate compromises or wage aggressive campaigns on key issues," says Matthew C. Waxman.
"What is clear is that there is no shortage of challenges or opportunities beyond America's borders. What may matter most when it comes to this country's national security, though, is whether it can put its own economic and political house in order," says Richard N. Haass.
This CFR Issue Guide provides resources and analysis on President Obama's inauguration and the foreign policy challenges facing his second administration.
Joseph Biden, Barack Obama's "single most influential foreign policy adviser," is poised surpass Dick Cheney as the most powerful vice president in American history in the president's second term, writes David Rothkopf.
In an interview with ABC News, Richard N. Haass answers eight questions about the "fiscal cliff," Israel, President Obama's recent cabinet nominations, among others.
Micah Zenko says, "Similar to everyday choices like which brand of cereal to buy, how senior military officials present and characterize military options strongly influences policymakers' decisions."
The Council on Foreign Relations' David Rockefeller Studies Program—CFR's "think tank"—is home to more than seventy full-time, adjunct, and visiting scholars and practitioners (called "fellows"). Their expertise covers the world's major regions as well as the critical issues shaping today's global agenda. Download the printable CFR Experts Guide.
Special operations play a critical role in how the United States confronts irregular threats, but to have long-term strategic impact, the author argues, numerous shortfalls must be addressed.
The author analyzes the potentially serious consequences, both at home and abroad, of a lightly overseen drone program and makes recommendations for improving its governance.
Two experts argue that despite myriad development strategies, only one can succeed in alleviating poverty in India: the overall growth of the country's economy. More
