Below are
links to two recent articles that I believe are “must reads” with respect to U.S. foreign
policy. Both have received a great deal
of attention…but I would bet far more people have read about them than
have read the articles (both interviews) themselves.
The second
is the one that has received the most press, Hillary Clinton’s interview with
Jeffrey Goldberg of The Atlantic. Also
wide-ranging, Clinton
alternates between defending and praising Obama and yet distancing herself from
his policies, often quite bluntly.


My view is
that the interview was ill-timed, for many reasons. First, Obama is in the midst of managing
these many crises real-time, and for Hillary to go on the offensive now is
simply wrong, in a manner vaguely similar to Mitt Romney’s post-Benghazi
comments. The fire is too hot and we
should be rallying thoughtfully at this time. Second, politically, criticizing Obama now
simply gives fodder to GOP candidates for the mid-terms, who can now rightly
say that it is not just FOX or McCain who think Obama is a wimp, it is his own
former Secretary of State. And finally,
from her own timing standpoint, Hillary should be playing a very cautious game
now as an unannounced candidate, and stirring the pot in this manner does not
benefit her at all. There is ample time
for her to strike the right balance between defending the Obama record on
issues in which she played a major role, while making clear that her worldview
is different and a bit more hawkish.
Starting next spring, for instance, after the mid-terms, and after she
announces.
The Obama interview:
The Clinton interview:
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