Brzezinski Grades Presidents, U.S. Foreign Policy

[Emit]

He gives Clinton a "C", Poppy Bush a "B" and W an "F." That's just the intro - he then goes into some detail on his take on what we're facing in the Middle East and more.

His speaking out lately is scaring the sh!t out of me. Knowing what he knows and talking the way he's talking makes me think we don't even know the half of it all.

Worth a listen, IMHO. Approx. 7 minutes -- Listen @: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7852808

All Things Considered, March 12, 2007 · The most optimistic note in Zbigniew Brzezinski's book about current U.S. foreign policy is the title, Second Chance.

Washington has squandered its first chance at global leadership, says Brzezinski, who was national security adviser under President Jimmy Carter.

In his book, Brzezinski assesses the foreign policies of the three most recent U.S. presidents — the only three leaders who have led the country after the Cold War and Washington's Soviet rival imploded.

Brzezinski tells Robert Siegel that George H.W. Bush merits a B, while Bill Clinton receives a C and the current president, George W. Bush, an F.

There is still opportunity for America to regain its prestige, Brzezinki says, but he warns that the next 20 months will be crucial. If the U.S. war in Iraq worsens and if it expands to Iran, then Brzezinski warns the era of American global pre-eminence in the world will prove to be historically very short.

Excerpt: 'Second Chance'
by Zbigniew Brzezinski

Each of the three presidents since America's victory in the Cold War has been the world's most important player in the world's most important game, and each has played in his own way. At this stage, suffice it to say that Global Leader I was the most experienced and diplomatically skillful but was not guided by any bold vision at a very unconventional historic moment. Global Leader II was the brightest and most futuristic, but he lacked strategic consistency in the use of American power. Global Leader III had strong gut instincts but no knowledge of global complexities and a temperament prone to dogmatic formulations.

The box below summarizes the fundamental changes in the global environment that occurred during the first decade and a half of America's unprecedented global primacy. These events are the basis on which the performance of the first three American global leaders will be appraised in the chapters that follow. The list shows, in capsule form, both the opportunities that were within America's reach and the steps leading to the increasingly complex crisis that superpower America now confronts.

TEN MAJOR TURNING POINTS, 1990–2006

Key developments reshaping the world system.

1. The Soviet Union is forced out of Eastern Europe and disintegrates. The United States is on top of the world.

2. The U.S. military victory in the first Gulf War is politically wasted. Middle Eastern peace is not pursued. Islamic hostility toward the United States begins to rise.

3. NATO and the European Union expand into Eastern Europe. The Atlantic community emerges as the predominant influence on the world scene.

4. Globalization is institutionalized with the creation of the World Trade Organization, the new role of the International Monetary Fund with its bailout fund, and the increased anticorruption agenda of the World Bank. "Singapore issues" become the foundation for the Doha Round of WTO negotiations.

5. The Asian financial crisis sets the foundation for a nascent East Asian regional community, to be characterized either by Chinese dominance or by Sino-Japanese competition. China's admission to the WTO encourages its ascent as a major global economic player and a center of regional trade agreements with politically more assertive and impatient poorer countries.

6. Two Chechen wars, the NATO conflict in Kosovo, and Vladimir Putin's election as president of Russia contribute to a rise in Russian authoritarianism and nationalism. Russia exploits its gas and oil resources to become an assertive energy superpower.

7. Facing a permissive attitude from the United States and others, India and Pakistan defy world public opinion to become nuclear powers. North Korea and Iran intensify their covert efforts to acquire nuclear capabilities in the face of inconsistent and inconsequential U.S. efforts to induce their self-restraint.

8. September 11, 2001, shocks the United States into a state of fear and the pursuit of unilateral policies. The United States declares war on terror.

9. The Atlantic community splits over the U.S. war in Iraq. The European Union fails to develop its own political identity or clout.

10. The post–1991 worldwide impression of U.S. global military omnipotence and Washington's illusions about the extent of America's power have been shattered by U.S. failures in postvictory Iraq. The United States acknowledges the need for cooperation with the European Union, China, Japan, and Russia regarding major issues of global security. The Middle East becomes the make-or-break test case of U.S. leadership.

Related NPR Stories
Aug. 8, 2006
Former Advisers Analyze Current U.S. Mideast Policy
July 8, 2006
Exiting Iraq: Zbigniew Brzezinski's View
March 21, 2006
Expert Considers Consequence of Leaving Iraq

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7852808

Edited to add a link

[Rydz777]

1. C-SPAN

I've recently watched Brzezinski on C-SPAN and I agree that what he is revealing is what lies under the tip of the iceberg. Bush has squandered the lives and limbs of our military, squandered our treasure, squandered our international reputation and position, and probably squandered our future prosperity. I think Brzezinski is seriously worried and so should be the rest of us.