This Doesn’t Bode Well for Global Problems

2009-12-04

Despite the recent rise of countries like China, India and Brazil, the United States is still the global leader by most accounts. Since we all face possible climate change annihilation, severe financial imbalances, terrorism/extremism, and raw materials shortages, all nations need to be onboard with multilateral discussions.

Bad timing for this (from the Foreign Policy blog):

[A] new CFR/PEW poll reveals a massive yawning gap between the opinions of the general public and the foreign policy elite on Obama's handling of national security and foreign policy.

The other interesting bit of data from the poll shows a huge jump isolationist sentiment in the U.S. public. As the authors write, "For the first time in more than 40 years of polling, a plurality (49%) says the United States should "mind its own business internationally" and let other countries get along the best they can on their own."

Jeebus. I know that the U.S. is traditionally an isolationist nation, but those trends are rather creepy.

At first glance, it seems that whenever the U.S. has a rough time (e.g. Vietnam, bad economy), the reflex is to pull back into its shell.

At a time when the U.S. economy couldn't survive without foreign trade and investment, seems like now is not the time to be an isolationist.

It's also rather ironic that at the time when the Bush Administration was trampling on international law and toppling governments, the poll results during that period suggest that Americans thought that other nations should "get along on their own." Hard to do that when your country is being occupied by American troops.

I suppose this is also bad news for those of us who support free trade and oppose protectionism and would like some action on a multilateral agreement on greenhouse gas emissions.

Tags: U.S.-China Relations