Barack Obama has been a good leader on foreign policy.

Resolved: Barack Obama has been a good leader on foreign policy. First: I argue that being a good leader in foreign policy means being able to achieve foreign policy objectives and being able to handle international crises of the time in a successful manner. It does not mean being the greatest leader ever on foreign policy. It means playing the cards you have been dealt well under the circumstances. By this definition, Barack Obama has been a good leader on foreign policy. Examples of Obama’s good leadership: -Achieving major policy objectives. -Appointing good sub-leaders, especially keeping his predecessor’s policies, advisors, commanders, etc. when they were good. -Giving good orders. -Handling multiple theaters of operations effectively. -Handling crises well. A. Initial achievements of the Obama administration were: 1. The selection of an excellent foreign policy team. Selecting a team of commanders is one of the most important duties of the President. Since it is the commanders that will do most of the heavy lifting on foreign policy and appointing a bad commander can lead to disaster (example: Donald Rumsfeld). It is one of the major achievements of Obama that he has surrounded himself with excellent, highly capable leaders in major theaters of operation. With Hillary Clinton as secretary of state, Robert Gates as Secretary of Defense (kept on from the Bush administration, even though it was an opposition administration, for his impeccable record on the Iraq and Afghanistan wars followed (by Leon Pannetta)), and General David Petraeus (An excellent general on current day counter-insurgency operations) in various highly effective positions. The President also made the difficult call of replacing top Afghanistan commander (Stanley McChrystal) for showing insubordination. This decision did not result in significant damage to the campaign as he was replaced by David Petraeus. 2. The improvement of America’s tarnished image abroad. Even before he became President, Barack Obama inspired hundreds of thousands of people abroad, not only as the first viable African American presidential candidate but a substantial change of pace from the bush era image of America as a go it alone rouge that could not be trusted. [1] That the president was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize based only on the strength of his words is evidence that he successfully changed America’s perception abroad. B. The biggest foreign policy challenges that President Obama has faced have been: 1. The ongoing war on terror. President Obama has handled the war on terror extremely well, with no major terrorist attacks on the US mainland since the beginning of his presidency. Continuing the work of the Bush administration, a slew of top ranking Al Qaeda operatives have been killed or captured during Pres. Obama’s presidency[2] including Osama Bin Laden, the most wanted man on Earth and the chief architect of the 9/11 attacks, the most devastating attack against America in recent history. This was one of the major unfulfilled objectives of the Bush administration and it is a clear and unquestionable achievement of the Obama administration. The President gave the order to send in a seal team into dangerous territory without tipping off Bin Laden’s possible Pakistani allies. [3] 2. The war in Afghanistan (And Northern Pakistan). Inherited from the Bush administration, this war was an incredibly difficult war that was neglected at times by the Bush administration in favor of the optional and perhaps unnecessary war in Iraq. President Obama approved the increase of first 19,000 then 30,000 American soldiers to the war effort. The war continues, with the Afghan Army now numbering 200,000 strong and increasingly ready for the American withdrawal in 2014. [4] The President has maintained the highly successful drone campaign in Northen Pakistan (Waziristan), which has resulted in a high number of Al-Qaeda deaths coupled with zero American casualties and without the need for an expensive occupation as in Iraq or Afghanistan. [5] 3. The conclusion of the war in Iraq. In both Afghanistan and Iraq, the president maintained the most successful policies of the Bush administration, and an excellent team of commanders (Petraeus, Gates, Pannetta). Today Iraq continues to develop into a democracy and although there is still some insurgent activity, President Obama was able to pull American forces out of the country in 2011 without the country collapsing. [6] A major achievement in a war that was often considered a quagmire during the previous administration. 4. The Arab spring (Lybia, Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen etc. ). President Obama has dealt with the unprecedented Arab Spring which has resulted in the liberation of millions of people from the chains of tyranny. Often walking a tight rope of foreign policy decisions (especially in the case of the Mubarak regime of Egypt, a former US ally that was dumped by the administration in favor of the uprising). One of the major achievements of the President was the fact that the international community was willing to support and participate in the military intervention in Lybia which toppled Muammar Gaddafi without a single American casualty. 5. Iran and North Korea. The President’s policy on Iran and North Korea has been sanctions and the threat of military force in the case of Iran. The President has so far reframed from attacking Iran, but given the experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan, this has been the right call so far. Conclusion: The President faced an incredibly complex foreign policy environment coupled with the most devastating economic crisis since the Great Depression at the start of his presidency, and has so far succeeded in carrying out major policy objectives without major problems. This was by no means a foregone conclusion and the fact that the President has achieved the pullout from Iraq, the killing of Osama Bin Laden, the defeat of the Lybian and Mubarack regimes and the overall successful handling of the complex problems he inherited must be recognized. President Obama has not just been a good president, but a great president on Foreign Policy. He was dealt some tough cards, and has played his hand well. Please vote Pro! [1] . http://www.cbsnews.com.... [2] . http://abcnews.go.com.... [3] . http://www.foxnews.com.... [4] . http://www.theaustralian.com.au.... [5] . http://www.bloomberg.com.... [6] . http://www.cbsnews.com....