Summary
We believe that American foreign policy should reflect both our national interest and our values. In order to be effective, American foreign policy needs to be non-partisan and coordinated with our allies. The United States and its allies need to make it unambiguously clear that seizing territory through military force is not acceptable.
This policy position contains five subsections: Russia, China, Defense Spending, the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, and Nation Building. You will find a poll about each of those issues at the end of each subsection.
If you have already made up your mind about the general policy principles stated above, then scroll to the bottom of the page and take the poll to let us know how you feel. If you need to hear more, please read the background section below.
Background
Historically, U.S. foreign policy has been far more bipartisan than domestic policy. As such, there is less need for CIVPAC to weigh in on these issues.
We are, however, more than a little concerned that the rise of social media may have created a vehicle for foreign governments to manipulate American elections in order to influence U.S. foreign policy. We think the best defense against that is a well-informed electorate and transparency laws that make it clear if foreign agents are behind social media efforts to influence elections.
Philosophy on Defense and Foreign Policy Issues
As a general rule, we think that we ought to expect other nations to act in a way consistent with their self-interest and therefore are suspicious of policy prescriptions that have the flavor of unilateral disarmament or “leading by example” and expecting others to follow. At the same time, we believe that we ought not to violate our own principles in the pursuit of tactical advantages in international conflicts. We believe that our unique history does create a form of American exceptionalism and that America is and should be a force for good in the world.
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