I don’t know whether Tillerson is right or wrong. I cringed when he made that statement...but I will always slam Mccain no matter what!
Tillerson is absolutely right. And McCain, as usual, is an idiot.
Translation: The US can’t be the world’s policeman and we must deal with all kinds of unsavory regimes to advance our national interests. It is called Realpolitik. It is the exact opposite of Jimmy Carter’s human rights foreign policy that led us to crack down on our allies (like the Shah) and do little to our adversaries.
I agree with Tillerson 100% on this.
The strength and security of our nation must always be the focus of American foreign policy.
Yes, American values can be embraced in foreign nations, but most foreigners (understandably) find our values to be foreign. Many foreigners find American values to be repugnant. (As do most college professors here at home.)
It would be nice if every nation could be a free society with a republican form of government. But most cultures on the planet don’t provide the basic frameworks for that to happen. Attempts to impose the same are destined yo fail.
Well this North Korean defector certainly likes the way Trump is handling things so far:
I think that is little more than recognition that we interact with other nations of the world as we find them, not how we would prefer them to be. Our constitution and our values aren’t those of the rest of the world nor should they be. All nations have their own history and there own path to how they are formed and function.
I think Tillerson is absolutely right. Trump ran on America first. We have spent our resources on social issues in other countries for years and neglected our own country. And it never works.
Foreign policy should be based on coldly calculated national interests. Period. The squeamish should turn away and not look.