Reengaging With the World

A Return to Moral Leadership

John Edwards

From Foreign Affairs, September/October 2007

Summary:  In the wake of the Iraq debacle, we must restore America's reputation for moral leadership and reengage with the world. We must move beyond the empty slogan 'war on terror' and create a genuine national security policy that is built on hope, not fear. Only then can America once again become a beacon to the world.

John Edwards, a former U.S. Senator from North Carolina, is a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination.

BEYOND THE "WAR ON TERROR"

There is no question that we must confront terrorist groups such as al Qaeda with the full force of our military might. As commander in chief, I will never hesitate to apply the full extent of our security apparatus to protect our vital interests, take measures to root out terrorist cells, and strike swiftly and forcefully against those who seek to harm us.

But I believe we must stay on the offensive against both terrorism and its causes. The "war on terror" approach has backfired, straining our military to the breaking point while allowing the threat of terrorism to grow. "War on terror" is a slogan designed for politics, not a strategy to make the United States safe. It is a bumper sticker, not a plan. Worst of all, the "war on terror" has failed. Instead of making the United States safer, it has spawned even more terrorism -- as we have seen so tragically in Iraq -- and left us with fewer allies.

There is no question that we are less safe today as a result of this administration's policies. The Bush administration has walked the United States right into the terrorists' trap. By framing this struggle against extremism as a war, it has reinforced the jihadists' narrative that we want to conquer the Muslim world and that there is a "clash of civilizations" pitting the West against Islam. From Guant�namo to Abu Ghraib, the "war on terror" has tragically become the recruitment poster al Qaeda wanted. Instead of reengaging with the peoples of the world, we have driven too many into the terrorists' arms. In fact, defining the current struggle against radical Islamists as a war minimizes the challenge we face by suggesting that the fight against Islamist extremism can be won on the battlefield alone.

For these reasons, many generals and national security experts have criticized the president's "war on terror" approach. Retired Marine General Anthony Zinni has said that the "war on terror" is a counterproductive doctrine. So has the government of one of our closest allies; the new British prime minister, Gordon Brown, has distanced himself from the term. Admiral William Fallon -- President George W. Bush's new chief of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) -- has instructed his staff to stop saying that we are in a "long war." These leaders know that we need substance, not slogans.

Leading Republicans have echoed such views. The president's own former secretary of defense, Donald Rumsfeld, said last March that the doctrine was one of his regrets. "It is not a war on terror," he flatly told an interviewer. Meanwhile, former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani curiously seems to have forgotten that he said in March that we should abandon the "war on terror" approach because, in his words, "America is seen as a country by too many that wants to have war, or exercises its power too much, pushes its weight around too much."

Yet the politics of fear remains tempting. Some have chosen to pillory those who dare question the concept of a "war on terror" as somehow weak. But these attacks unmask the slogan for what it is: a political sledgehammer used to stifle debate and justify policies that would otherwise be utterly unacceptable.

Our enemies are taking advantage of the United States' declining popularity. According to a recent article by the former CIA official Bruce Riedel in this magazine, al Qaeda has expanded its reach not only across Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan but even in Europe. And a recent report by the National Counterterrorism Center found that al Qaeda's operational capabilities have returned to levels unseen since just before 9/11. Iran has been emboldened by the Bush administration's ineffective policies and has announced plans to expand its nuclear program. Meanwhile, other powers are benefiting, too. China is capitalizing on the United States' current unpopularity to project its own "soft power." And Russia is bullying its neighbors while openly defying the United States and Europe.

Our law enforcement, security, and intelligence professionals are to be congratulated and honored for stopping plots such as the recent conspiracy to attack John F. Kennedy International Airport, in New York City. However, we must not let our enthusiasm for these tactical victories cloud a broader view of the threat environment. In April, the State Department released a report stating that terrorism had increased 29 percent worldwide between 2005 and 2006, with most attacks occurring in Iraq and Afghanistan. We need to refocus our national security policy on the mission of protecting Americans from twenty-first-century threats rather than pursuing discredited ideological agendas. What we need is not more slogans but a comprehensive strategy to respond to terrorism and prevent it from taking root in the first place. This strategy should transcend the familiar divide between "hard power" and "soft power." Instead, we need to place "smart power" at the center of our national security policy.