Don't Expect A Change in Foreign Policy

{
  "authors": [
    "John Judis"
  ],
  "type": "legacyinthemedia",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
  ],
  "collections": [],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
  "programAffiliation": "",
  "programs": [],
  "projects": [],
  "regions": [
    "North America",
    "United States"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Security",
    "Military",
    "Foreign Policy"
  ]
}

In The Media

Don't Expect A Change in Foreign Policy

Despite his campaign promises, Obama’s initial foreign policy might not differ dramatically from Bush’s policies of the last two years. After failures during his first six years in office, Bush has struck a more diplomatic tone in recent years. Obama, who has tapped several Bush administration veterans for his own national security team, is likely to continue on this increasingly diplomatic path.

By John Judis

Published on Dec 10, 2008

Source: The New Republic

Despite his campaign promises, Obama’s initial foreign policy might not differ dramatically from Bush’s policies of the last two years. After failures during his first six years in office, Bush has struck a more diplomatic tone in recent years. He has, to name a few examples, sent an envoy to a meeting with Iranian officials, taken North Korea off the terrorist list, and negotiated a Status of Forces agreement that sets a timetable for withdrawal from Iraq.

Obama appears likely to continue on this path of gradually increasing diplomacy, particularly in light of the fact that he has tapped Bush veterans Robert Gates and James Jones for his national security team. While these appointments do indeed represent some departure from Obama’s campaign rhetoric, they will bring important continuity to U.S. foreign policy, which will turn out to be good for the country as a whole.

Click here to watch the full interview on The New Republic's TNRtv.

About the Author

John Judis

Former Visiting Scholar

As a visiting scholar at Carnegie, Judis wrote The Folly of Empire: What George W. Bush Could Learn from Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson.

Recent Work

In The Media
This Election Could be the Birth of a Trump-Sanders Constituency
- John Judis
In The Media
Policy Chops
- John Judis

Security Military Foreign Policy North America United States

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Commentary
Carnegie Politika
What Does Central Europe’s Post-Orban Russia Policy Look Like?
Though Orban is gone, Putin can still count on some like-minded individuals in Central and Eastern Europe. However, they will seek to avoid open confrontation with EU institutions over Ukraine and their ties with Moscow.

Dimitar Bechev
Commentary
Carnegie Politika
Are Russia-Japan Relations Really Warming Up?
The truth is that Japan’s government is seeking a degree of reengagement but at a vastly reduced level than under Abe. Most significantly, Japan has shown no willingness to ease sanctions.
James D.J. Brown
Commentary
Carnegie Politika
Brussels and Baku Are Talking Again: What Next?
Azerbaijan’s relations with the EU appear to be going from strength to strength after several years in the deep freeze following the military escalation in Karabakh in 2023 and Azerbaijan’s bitter fallout with France and several other EU member states.
Shujaat Ahmadzada
Commentary
Strategic Europe
Trump Turns NATO into a Tool of Coercion
The full list of humiliations Europe has endured since Donald Trump returned to the White House makes for grim reading. But Washington’s adversarial approach to its allies undermines its own power base.
Rym Momtaz
Paper
The French Far Right’s Foreign Policy: Big Ambitions, Uncertain Direction
The National Rally’s electoral strength, coupled with its internal fragility at a crucial political juncture, contributes to foreign policy vagueness.
Catherine Fieschi

Don't Expect A Change in Foreign Policy

More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Commentary

Carnegie Politika

What Does Central Europe’s Post-Orban Russia Policy Look Like?

Though Orban is gone, Putin can still count on some like-minded individuals in Central and Eastern Europe. However, they will seek to avoid open confrontation with EU institutions over Ukraine and their ties with Moscow.

Dimitar Bechev

Commentary

Carnegie Politika

Are Russia-Japan Relations Really Warming Up?

The truth is that Japan’s government is seeking a degree of reengagement but at a vastly reduced level than under Abe. Most significantly, Japan has shown no willingness to ease sanctions.

James D.J. Brown

Commentary

Carnegie Politika

Brussels and Baku Are Talking Again: What Next?

Azerbaijan’s relations with the EU appear to be going from strength to strength after several years in the deep freeze following the military escalation in Karabakh in 2023 and Azerbaijan’s bitter fallout with France and several other EU member states.

Shujaat Ahmadzada

Commentary

Strategic Europe

Trump Turns NATO into a Tool of Coercion

The full list of humiliations Europe has endured since Donald Trump returned to the White House makes for grim reading. But Washington’s adversarial approach to its allies undermines its own power base.

Rym Momtaz

Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella on stage during a Rassemblement National RN rally For la France du Travail in Macon in Saone et Loire France May 1 2026

Paper

The French Far Right’s Foreign Policy: Big Ambitions, Uncertain Direction

The National Rally’s electoral strength, coupled with its internal fragility at a crucial political juncture, contributes to foreign policy vagueness.

Catherine Fieschi