US doesn’t do policy by polls
With the recent poll that made headlines that Americans are expressing disapproval of the President Barack Obama’s foreign policy particularly pointing to the recent Iraqi crisis, US Secretary of State John Kerry addressed the issue by saying that US doesn’t do foreign policy by polls.
In an interview with James Rosen of Fox, Secretary Kerry said it would be a tragedy and a huge mistake to pay attention to polls all the time.
He explained that with a certain amount of upheaval all around the world it is unavoidable that people are going to stand back and they’re going to question it.
The percentage of Americans approving of President Barack Obama’s handling of foreign policy issues has dropped to the lowest level of his presidency as he faces multiple overseas challenges, including in Iraq, according to a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll. – NBC News
Secretary Kerry said a huge amount of what is happening is not happening because the United States is there or because the United States isn’t there.
“It’s happening because people in these places want something different.” – Secretary Kerry
He cited that Tahrir Square didn’t happen because of or the lack of the United States; it happened because young people wanted a new future and wanted to throw off the yoke of a dictator.
This also goes the same thing in Tunisia, same thing in Syria, he added.
However, Secretary Kerry highlighted that it’s inevitable that people will have a sense of dissatisfaction when things are in upheaval.
US Involved In All World’s Affairs
Shrugging off the poll against Obama, amid the dissatisfaction, Kerry said it cannot be denied that the US is involved at any time particularly in the crises of North Korea working to denuclearize, Iran to prevent them from having a nuclear weapon, Syria to help the moderate opposition to deal with a dictator who is killing his own people.
With regards to the Iraq crisis, the American people also don’t want American troops going into these places to fight the wars for these people.
“So there are very limited tools, very limited tools.” – Secretary Kerry
This time, he said the US is working hard in Iraq to be able to pull together a unifying government, a competent government that’s prepared to be able to try to deal with some of the issues in the war-stricken country.
Civil Strife Engulfs Iraq
As violence in Iraq is making headlines around the world, questions started to stir, asking if Iraq is in a state of civil war.
In an interview with Alexander Marquardt of ABC in Erbil in Iraq earlier this week, US Secretary of State Kerry addressed the issue that Iraq is in civil strife rather than a civil war.
Secretary underscored that what is happening in Iraq is that Sunni leaders and even some of the Shia leaders are all determined to follow the constitutional process to try to form a government that can be a unity government that can pull people together.
However, even with the Iraqi leaders having the same ground to end the violence, ISIS otherwise is pulling some people towards a potential for civil war.
