Don't Let The Democrats Off That Easy

Matt Yglesias defends neocon-bashing:

It’s actually true that neocon bashing is a bit on the tiresome side. That said, I think it really has to be understood as a vital social necessity. Adherents of a deranged and sociopoathic “neocon” conception of America’s role in the world continue to be tremendously influential in our society. They have columns at The Washington Post and dominate the foreign policy coverage on Fox News. They have The Weekly Standard and Commentary and a healthy slice of The New Republic. And most important, as best as anyone can tell their ideas remain utterly dominant in the Republican Party. Their intra-party critics like Colin Powell, rather than winning intra-party arguments seem to be simply drifting out of the GOP coalition.

While Yglesias is right (neocon-bashing is sorely needed in this country), he's too generous towards anyone who isn't a Republican or people who write columns for the New York Times. The tenets of neoconservatism are alive and strong in both parties, and, while certainly dominant in the Republican party, they are arguably dominant in the Democratic party. Pres. Obama is certainly a better actor on the world stage than Pres. Bush, but that's not really that hard. It's just so refreshing we think our new president is a foreign policy maestro. Well, no, he's not. The President is still amenable to neoconservative ideas. Escalating troop levels in Afghanistan is a neoconservative move and the President grandly made it. The continued drone strikes in Pakistan, the special forces operations that cross the AfPak border, the dream of remaking Afghanistan are all born out of neocon notions that countries can be remade by the force of the United States alone.

Furthermore, the President, the Congress, and just about every American writer can't find an international issue they don't feel required to comment on. The President eagerly jumped in to condemn the coup in Honduras, when it's quite possible the military was removing a President who was committing unconstitutional acts. The Congress voted up a statement supporting the protests in Iran, when they had little information about what was going on there and had no idea who would rise to power if the protests did succeed. The President wisely stayed away from providing an opinion on the Iranian upheaval because the US is often used by the current Iranian regime as a bogeyman to rally support. Yet, the Congress jumped in and provided just what the President wanted to avoid. However, the President does not get flying colors here either because he jumped in later on. The idea that the US has a say in everything goes on on the globe is neoconservative. The US is a leader, they say, US leadership is required because who else will pacify the globe?

Get back to me when Democrats start arguing to pull out of Afghanistan, to consider our interests before acting, and to stop getting involved in disputes that are not our business. On the day that starts happening I'll indict Republicans alone for neoconservatism. Democrats are still liable for the domination of neoconservatism over foreign policy. And, this is not because Democrats have accepted neoconservative ideas. Rather, it's Republicans who have made neoconservatism part of their platform from the Democrats. Richard Perle is a registered Democrat. Paul Wolfowitz and Douglas Feith are former aides to Democrat Scoop Jackson, one of the progenitors of neoconservatism. Scoop Jackson Democrats held many of the same ideals as modern neoconservatives. While some might think this is odd, it's really not when you consider neoonservativism through the lens of America's foreign policy history. There are three traditions in Amerian foreign policy: European-style realpolitik, Roosevelt-style exceptionalism, and Wilsonian idealism. Neoconservatism is the combination of Roosevelt and Wilson. Where Wilson wanted collective security, neoons have placed American military might. Where Roosevelt would wipe out an entire island of people he considered savages just to project American power, neocons have placed American ideals. Think of it as a tank with a smiley face painted on the front. Republicans and Democrats are responsible for neoconservatism. Both parties unknowingly worked together throughout history to produce neoconservative foreign policy.