Obama Freedom Policy?

President Obama recently stated that he did not think that the United States ought to impose its values on other countries, but rather we should lead by example. Democracy, the rule of law, freedom of speech and freedom of religion are universal principles that all nations are able to embrace, he claims.

I wish that all nations did embrace those principles. Unfortunately, that is not the case. While I do not think that America should impose its values, because impose is a strong word with negative connotations, I think that freedom, democracy and the rule of law ought to be our export of top priority. The means with which we export these invaluable ideals is open to debate and subject to disagreement.

Leading by example is one means to export liberty but will not work in every case. Assuring that Europe would continue to be free after WWII was not accomplished by our great nation simply leading by example. We led, or in the very least assisted, the Allied military effort on the battlefield to protect freedom abroad. The United States stood up to the expansion of communism in the Korean War and held firm in Berlin to protect freedom in Germany. Simply leading by example at home in the United States would not have stopped the German or Italian Fascists nor would it have stopped the spread of Soviet Communism.

I am of the belief that freedom is a natural desire of man and that the United States ought to assist societies in their quest for freedom. Leading by example is certainly the first step but when push comes to shove, America should be willing to fight alongside other nations trying to rise above tyranny as we have in the past. Were it not for the help of the French, after all, our Continental Army likely would have failed to defeat our tyrannical British overlords.

President Obama, with that statement, may have hinted at his underlying philosophy on foreign relations that breaks with the American policy of the past. There is an isolationist tone in his words that may not serve America, or the cause of freedom in the world, very well in an increasingly global world where freedom faces numerous obstacles.

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