Lake Forest College professor Jim Marquardt discusses foreign policy challenges facing the next president and the differences in the candidates' visions of America's role in the 21st century world.
The presidential election offers the American people two major party candidates with very different visions of America's role in the 21st century world. The reelection of President Trump means the continuation of the "America First" doctrine and a nationalist and unilateralist foreign policy, which imagines the United States reasserting its sovereignty after decades of being taken advantage of internationally by foes and friends alike.
The election of former Vice President Biden would instead represent a "back to the future" moment with the United States seeking to reassert the international leadership role it has had since the end of World War II. This so-called "liberal international order" rested on American power, American values, and America's commitment to multilateralism, democracy, economic openness, and law.
Lake Forest College professor Jim Marquardt will discuss the foreign policy challenges facing the next president and, by highlighting problems with both candidates' views, suggest an alternative global strategy for America, one that is mindful of the limits of American military and economic power and other tectonic shifts in international relations that have occurred over the past quarter century.
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