On the recordDecember 20, 2017
Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Georgia for yielding. This is a very important topic. I am going to touch on this by beginning with this idea of the distinction between the current administration and its foreign policy as outlined in the recent statement from President Trump and that of the previous administration. The distinction is very clear. The previous administration basically clung to an idea of neo-liberal institutionalism. That is to say, where there was a vacuum of power, we did not set the stage. America did not fill it. It remained a vacuum, with the idea being that an institution would fill that. Maybe the United Nations, maybe some other regional institution. But in doing so, we ceded over much of our sovereignty and failed to act to preserve and protect America's best interests. The current administration has taken a more realistic point of view. They are realists. That is, America's interests will be first and paramount. We will see to it, we will foster alliances, and we will foster participation with our fellow nations to preserve America's best interests. When America is strong, there is a greater chance for peace in the world. I believe that. That is the position of realists all the way back to Hans Morgenthau. Even neo-realists like Kenneth Waltz might agree.…





