Former Virginia senator Jim Webb said American foreign policy over the last two decades has had a lack of clarity and purpose. But the potential Democratic candidate for president stopped short of directly criticizing former secretary of state Hillary Clinton.
“Our country is in need of a clearly articulated foreign policy statement,” said Webb, speaking to a group of students at George Mason University’s campus in Arlington, Virginia, Thursday morning. “We haven’t had one in a long time. Who are we? How do we connect with the rest of the world? What are the value systems that we put in place when we articulate our foreign policy?”
Wearing a crisp black suit and sporting slightly grayer red hair, Webb added that while the country had clarity on its foreign policy goals throughout the Cold War, “we probably haven’t had a clear statement since 1993.”
What about Clinton, who was secretary of state during part of that period? THE WEEKLY STANDARD asked Webb how the Democratic presidential candidate had or hadn’t contributed to an unclear foreign policy.
“You’ll have to ask her,” Webb replied. “No comment.”
Webb was elected to the Senate in 2006, defeating Republican incumbent George Allen and running as an anti-war Democrat highly critical of President George W. Bush’s foreign policy. The Vietnam veteran had served as Navy secretary under Ronald Reagan. Webb decided not to run for reelection in 2012. Earlier this year, he began actively exploring a run for president.
Where does Webb fit into the Democratic party on foreign policy? He’s a bit of a contrarian. Describing himself as a “realist,” Webb cautioned against unnecessary wars and touted his support for “a vigorous sea-power presence” and a rebuilt Navy. He obliquely criticized the current president’s foreign policy when discussing the millennial support for Barack Obama in 2008. “Those young people are now 30, and they’re living in a different world. Not necessarily a better world, but the world looked different at the time,” he said.
And perhaps unique for any Democratic presidential hopeful in the last 40 years, Webb offered praise for Ronald Reagan, the president he worked under at the Pentagon.
“When I think about how national security policy is developed and implemented, I go back to what learned in the Marine Corps, and that is, if you have a problem put leaders on the problem,” Webb said. “Ronald Reagan showed this as much as any president in my lifetime.”
While several Democratic candidates have entered the race in the last week, including Bernie Sanders, Martin O’Malley, and Lincoln Chafee, Webb said he would not put a “timetable” on when he’ll make an announcement.
