George Bush's positin on

War Powers: Instability in North Korea and Iran as well as the continuing war on terror will pose unique challenges for the next President. The President must fulfill his role as Commander in Chief by deciding when military action is necessary to solve problems.

Description of the candidate's position: The heart of President Bush's National Security Strategy (also known as the Bush Doctrine) is a doctrine of preemption. Bush is willing to attack countries which he perceives to be a threat before they attack the U.S. Bush sees the importance of building alliances and finding international support, but when those fail he has no qualms about taking unilateral military action. He reserves the right to attack a country which may not pose an immediate threat, but may become a threat at a future, unknown date. Link.

Quotation from the candidate: "[On September 11, 2001] this nation saw the face of a new enemy. We discovered that there is no safety beyond vast oceans. For our own safety, we resolve to take the battle to the enemy." Link.

Assessment of the policy:

Positive: The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) is a group dedicated to exploring economic and foreign policy issues. The AEI praised the Bush doctrine, noting that it "has freed us from the ingrained balance-of-power thinking of the Cold War and post-Cold War eras. In its rejection of containment and deterrence, it has likewise restored to prominence the historic characteristics of American national security policy: a proactive defense and the aggressive expansion of freedom. In its explicit focus not only on tearing down Saddam Hussein's terror state, but on raising up the lives of the long-suffering Iraqi people, it has pledged the United States to an ambitious, far-reaching course. It is a course from which we cannot, and should not, turn back." Despite the turmoil Iraq, the AEI has not wavered in its support of the Bush Doctrine. Link.

Negative: Foreign Policy in Focus (FPIF) is a think tank that "seeks to make the U.S. a more responsible global leader and global partner." This is because "by enshrining preventive war in the national security strategy both as a general policy doctrine and for countering terrorism in particular, the administration has further reduced everyone's security." FPIF concludes that President Bush's war policies endanger the U.S. instead of make it safer. Furthermore, his unilateral policies have weakened "multilateral institutions that are central to enhancing international law and security." Link.

Comparison: Generally speaking, Kerry favors multilateral actions while Bush is more of a unilateralist. Contrary to popular belief, Kerry reserves the right to preemption, but he would only use it as a very last resort. Bush is willing to preemptively attack countries who may pose a threat, and this is a stark contrast between his position and Kerry's.

Link to Kerry's issue page