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Huckabee claims Europe is (unintentionally) to blame for some of the US’ biggest terror threats, Romney is using an anti-European stance to further his campaign, Giuliani is turning away from Europe to focus on Asia, while McCain appears committed to revitalizing transatlantic relations.

As the 2008 US presidential elections approach, Europe may be wondering where it stands in the eyes of the presidential candidates. This is particularly true for the Republicans, whose near absence of remarks on internationalism and cooperation with allies has been pervasive during this electoral season’s discourse. The few times the international community has been addressed by GOP candidates, the remarks have often been quite critical of both Europe and individual European nation-states. Though many in Europe, partially for this reason, are hoping for a Democratic president (with Barack Obama being a particularly popular candidate), at this point in the race it’s still anyone’s game.

Mike Huckabee

Former governor of Arkansas, Mike Huckabee, provides one example of suspicious attitudes towards Europe, as can be seen in the following statement regarding the growth of terrorism and the issue of immigrant integration within Europe. In this month’s issue of Foreign Affairs, Huckabee claims that instead of producing melting pots:

Europe has separate pots boiling over with alienation and despair. In some countries, like France, it is more a lack of economic integration, while in others, like Britain, it is more a lack of cultural integration, but whatever the reason, Europe is a much more fertile breeding ground for terror than the United States. Unintentionally, some of our closest allies are producing some of our clearest threats.

Though a legitimate criticism of Europe’s failure to integrate, what Huckabee does not discuss is how he will handle the allies who are “producing some of our clearest threats.” Huckabee also criticized multiple countries, along with most of Europe, for continuing to deal with Iran:

Another way to contain Iran is through diplomacy. We must be as aggressive diplomatically as we have been militarily since 9/11. We must intensify our diplomatic efforts with China, India, Russia, South Korea, and European states and persuade them to put more economic pressure on Iran. These countries have been far more interested in pursuing profit than preventing proliferation. They must realize that if the United States does end up taking military action, they will bear some responsibility for having failed to maximize peaceful options…

Though he also says that “American foreign policy needs to change its tone and attitude, open up, and reach out […] the United States’ main fight today does not pit us against the world but pits the world against the terrorists,” it remains unconvincing that he is doing more than paying lip service to the call for change that exists even among Republicans, without affecting more than a minor shift in actual policy.

Further, Huckabee has been criticized not only for his ignorance on foreign affairs (as well as geography), but also for recognizing and then dismissing said ignorance. As reported in a recent Spiegel article by John C. Hulsman, Huckabee didn’t know that the state of emergency had been lifted in Pakistan:

[n]or did he know that Waziristan, where al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden is suspected to be in hiding, adjoins eastern and not western Afghanistan […] It is not that Huckabee is stupid; you do not become a successful businessman, governor of a state, and a respected clergyman if you are a moron. Rather, Huckabee simply does not care enough to learn the foreign policy basics…

John McCain

Senator McCain, on the other hand, appears to be the most anxious about the state of transatlantic relations, claiming in his essay for Foreign Affairs that, “as president, one of my top foreign policy priorities will be to revitalize the transatlantic partnership.” He goes on to say:

Americans should welcome the rise of a strong, confident European Union. The future of the transatlantic relationship lies in confronting the challenges of the twenty-first century worldwide: developing a common energy policy, creating a transatlantic common market tying our economies more closely together, and institutionalizing our cooperation on issues such as climate change, foreign assistance, and democracy promotion.

In addition to welcoming a strong European Union, McCain, like Huckabee, distances himself from the current administration’s stance, saying:

More broadly, America needs to revive the democratic solidarity that united the West during the Cold War. We cannot build an enduring peace based on freedom by ourselves. We must be willing to listen to our democratic allies. Being a great power does not mean that we can do whatever we want whenever we want, nor should we assume that we have all the wisdom, knowledge, and resources necessary to succeed. When we believe international action — whether military, economic, or diplomatic — is necessary, we must work to persuade our friends and allies that we are right. And we must also be willing to be persuaded by them. To be a good leader, America must be a good ally.

For these reasons, McCain could be the easiest to work with, from a European perspective. The title of his piece, however, “An Enduring Peace Built on Freedom,” continues to echo the Bush Administration’s call to bring democracy to the world. In his address to the International Relations Forum in Des Moines, McCain also maintained that “the best solution” to Europe’s concerns about immigration from North African and Levant nations is to create “new opportunities within those countries in education and economics. […] While there have been the beginnings of efforts from NATO, the G8 and the EU, I believe we need to go further with a far greater sense of urgency.” McCain might well expect European nations to adopt his sense of urgency as well.

Rudolph Giuliani

Former New York mayor, Rudolph Giuliani, has done little to address relations with Europe, especially outside the context of fighting terrorism. Arguing in Foreign Affairs that NATO should expand to take in more countries regardless of location, Giuliani believes that NATO’s overall role should be redefined as well:

For almost 60 years, [NATO] has been a vital bond connecting the United States and Europe. But its founding rationale dissolved with the end of the Cold War, and the alliance should be transformed to meet the challenges of this new century. NATO has already expanded to include former adversaries, taken on roles for which it was not originally conceived, and acted beyond its original theater. We should build on these successes and think more boldly and more globally. We should open the organization’s membership to any state that meets basic standards of good governance, military readiness, and global responsibility, regardless of its location […] In return, America can assure them that we will be there for them in times of crisis. They stood by America after 9/11, and America will never forget.

Giuliani also stressed that much attention has to be paid to Asia, suggesting that Asian countries will play a greater role than Europe in America’s future and that the transatlantic relationship would not be the most important one under a Giuliani administration:

As important as America’s Western alliances are, we must recognize that America will often be best served by turning also to its other friends, old and new. Much of America’s future will be linked to the already established and still rising powers of Asia.

In cases where America would “be best served” by turning to Asia instead of Europe, chances are it will be for reasons that are not particularly advantageous for Europe. The aforementioned Spiegel article by Hulsman even goes so far as to say, “Rudy Giuliani is, from the European perspective, a real Frankenstein’s monster […] Simply put, Giuliani’s desire to continue the Bush presidency would likely spell the end of the trans-Atlantic relationship as we know it.”

Mitt Romney

Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney has done the most to base his campaign on an anti-European stance. According to the British paper Telegraph, a leaked Romney campaign document stated that the European Union wants to “drag America down to Europe’s standards.” It is the goal of the Democrats, he argues, to Europeanize the US – with clear negative implications. “The question is whether we’re going to become a stronger nation leading the world or whether we’re going to follow the path of Europe and become a second-tier military and a second-tier nation.”

As for what his actual foreign policy in regard to Europe would be, were Romney to be elected, very little has been stated. In his Foreign Affairs piece, however, he did note that:

We must examine where existing alliances can be strengthened and reinvigorated and where new alliances need to be forged. I agree with former Spanish Prime Minister José María Aznar that we should build on the NATO alliance to defeat radical Islam.

As Giuliani focuses on Asia, Romney has almost exclusively addressed foreign policy in terms of the Middle East and expanding the relationship with Latin America. He is quite upfront in supporting an American hegemony, saying “for me what America should do is strengthen our military, strengthen our economy, and strengthen our family structure so that we always remain the most powerful nation on earth. A world without America as the leader is a very frightening place.” His stance clearly points towards unilateral policies which would prove problematic for international cooperation and for Europe.

Samantha Ferrell is an intern with atlantic-community.org. She received her BA from Tufts University in 2007, where she was awarded the Robert Asch Prize to fund research in Germany. Prior to joining atlantic-community.org, she interned in the publications department at the American Academy in Berlin. Samantha is currently enrolled in a master's program at the University of Potsdam.

Members of the Atlantic Community, who do you support? Which of these Republican candidates can do the most for America, for transatlantic relations, for the world? Tell us what you think by dropping a comment below!


Related Materials on the Atlantic Community:

• Nikolas Gvosdev: Time for Frank Talk on US-EU Relations
• Will Nuland: The Next American President: Republican Foreign Policy
• Will Nuland: The Next American President: Democratic Foreign Policy