Foreign Relations

Joe Biden On Foreign Relations

For three decades, Joe Biden has played a pivotal role in shaping U.S. foreign policy

He has become respected at home and abroad for his well-informed, common-sense approach to international relations.
As the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Biden has earned a reputation for working on a bipartisan basis with top Republican colleagues. Senator Richard Lugar, who is currently the top Republican on the committee has said: "Senator Biden has a very strong commitment to a bipartisan foreign policy and serves as a good example for everyone in Congress. He has a very broad, comprehensive view of the world. He's a good listener, but he's also a strong and effective advocate of his position."
Combating Terrorism and Weapons of Mass Destruction
Senator Biden is recognized as one of the nation's leading experts on terrorism. In a major speech on September 10, 2001, Senator Biden argued that the Bush administration's focus on missile defense had diverted out attention from more likely threats. The new threat to the United States, he said, "would not come from an inter-continental ballistic missile with a return address" but in "the belly of a plane" or from a "vial smuggled in a backpack or a bomb in the hold of a ship." After the attacks of 9/11, he argued that real security comes from prevention, no preemption. Threats must be defused before they reach the U.S. - especially the possibility that radical fundamentalists will acquire weapons of mass destruction. He authored legislation to help foreign countries address the threats of bioterrorism and nuclear or radiological ("dirty bombs") terrorism. He also sought to expand programs to destroy unsecured weapons of mass destruction and dangerous materials in the former Soviet Union and beyond.

Winning the Peace in Iraq
In July 2002, eight months before the Iraq war, Chairman Biden convened hearings to begin the national dialogue in Iraq. Together with Senator Richard Lugar, he proposed an alternative to the "use of force" resolution proposed by the Administration that would have limited the rationale for war, made international participation and legitimacy more important, and required detailed planning to secure the peace. Since the invasion of Iraq, he has provided constructive criticism of the Bush Administration and made specific recommendations to help U.S. policy succeed. His widely-praised plan to keep Iraq together by giving its main groups breathing room in their own regions would allow most of our troops to responsibly withdraw by the end of 2009. Senator Biden has traveled to Iraq eight times.

Preventing Genocide
Through his work on the Foreign Relations Committee, Biden has sought to promote the use of American power to stop dictators who commit crimes against humanity or genocide. In the 1990s, Biden was among the first to call for active American leadership to end Serbian aggression in Bosnia, and likewise urged U.S. action in Kosovo to stop Slobodon Milosevic's genocidal actions there. He has urged strong U.S. and international action to prevent genocide in Darfur, and authored legislation to engage NATO and provide additional sanctions to pressure the Sudanese regime.

Strengthening U.S. Diplomacy
Biden has worked across party lines to strengthen American diplomacy. In the late 1990s, he joined with Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jesse Helms on legislation to reorganize the government's foreign policy agencies, and co-authored the landmark "Helms-Biden" legislation authorizing the payment of nearly $1 billion in back dues owed to the United Nations, contigent on U.N. reforms. Senator Biden also has been a leader in expanding U.S. radio and television broadcasting into the Muslim world to explain U.S. policies and counter anti-American propaganda.

Senator Biden's legislative interests have focused on a wide range of foreign policy issues, including arms control and non-proliferation, European security, the Middle East peace process, and international narcotics policy. He has traveled widely during his Senate career and meets regularly with visiting heads of state and foreign ministers.

Cut $350B in military programs, from Star Wars to F-22's. (Dec 2007)
Universal national service, in military or Peace Corps. (Dec 2007)
Talks about nations acquiring uranium are more complicated. (Oct 2007)
Commitment to never use torture; no part of our policy, ever. (Sep 2007)
Don't Ask Don't Tell is antiquated & unworkable. (Aug 2007)
Missile defense is perfect metaphor for neo-isolationism. (Jul 2007)
Urged Pres. Bush to return to Washington on 9/11. (Jul 2007)
Voted NO on cutting $221M in benefits to Filipinos who served in WWII US Army. (Apr 2008)
Voted YES on requiring FISA court warrant to monitor US-to-foreign calls. (Feb 2008)
Voted NO on removing need for FISA warrant for wiretapping abroad. (Aug 2007)
Voted YES on limiting soldiers' deployment to 12 months. (Jul 2007)
Voted YES on implementing the 9/11 Commission report. (Mar 2007)
Voted YES on preserving habeas corpus for Guantanamo detainees. (Sep 2006)
Voted YES on requiring CIA reports on detainees & interrogation methods. (Sep 2006)
Voted YES on reauthorizing the PATRIOT Act. (Mar 2006)
Voted NO on extending the PATRIOT Act's wiretap provision. (Dec 2005)
Voted YES on restricting business with entities linked to terrorism. (Jul 2005)
Voted YES on restoring $565M for states' and ports' first responders. (Mar 2005)
Voted YES on adopting the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. (Oct 1999)
Voted YES on allowing another round of military base closures. (May 1999)
Voted NO on cutting nuclear weapons below START levels. (May 1999)
Voted YES on deploying National Missile Defense ASAP. (Mar 1999)
Voted YES on military pay raise of 4.8%. (Feb 1999)
Voted NO on prohibiting same-sex basic training. (Jun 1998)
Voted YES on favoring 36 vetoed military projects. (Oct 1997)
Voted YES on banning chemical weapons. (Apr 1997)
Voted NO on considering deploying NMD, and amending ABM Treaty. (Jun 1996)
Voted NO on 1996 Defense Appropriations. (Sep 1995)
Rated 80% by SANE, indicating a pro-peace voting record. (Dec 2003)
Give higher priority to rail security. (Jul 2005)
Restore habeas corpus for detainees in the War on Terror. (Jun 2007)
School assistance to survivors of injured federal police. (Oct 1996)

Doctrine of crisis prevention, not preemption

Q: When future historians write of your administration's foreign policy, what will be noted as your doctrine?

A: Clarity. Prevention, not preemption. An absolute repudiation of this president's doctrine, which has only three legs in the stool: 1) don't talk to anybody; 2) preemption; & 3) regime change. I would reject all three. We need a doctrine of prevention. The role of a great power is to prevent crises. And we don't have to imagine any of the crises. You have Pakistan, Russia, China, Darfur.

Source: 2007 Des Moines Register Democratic debate Dec 13, 2007

Hold China accountable; it's capitulation, not competition

Q: Many presidential candidates have talked tough about China and its human rights record in the past but, in the end, favor securing our economic interest rather than risk upsetting China. How would you balance human rights and trade with China?

A: I've been pushing, on the Foreign Relations Committee for the last seven years, that we hold China accountable at the United Nations. At the UN, we won't even designate China as a violator of human rights. Now, what's the deal there? We talk about competition in terms of trade. It's capitulation, not competition. Name me another country in the world that we would allow to conduct themselves the way China has, and not call them on the carpet at the UN

Q: So you would call them on th carpet?
A: Absolutely.

Q: You would appoint a UN ambassador who would press for this?

A: It's the one way to get China to reform. You can't close your eyes. You can't pretend. It is self-defeating. It's a Hobson's choice we're giving people here.

Source: 2007 Democratic radio debate on NPR Dec 4, 2007

Move from a Musharraf policy to a Pakistan policy
I do not think we should maintain the same aid we're giving. I have made it clear to Musharraf. If he did not take off his uniform, if he did not hold fair and free elections by the middle of January, I would on the floor of the Senate move to take away the aid we're giving with regard to F-16s and P-3s, because that's the biggest leverage you have on him within his military. He is not a sole player. He has to keep his military happy as well. I would use that leverage. We should move from a Musharraf policy to a Pakistan policy. Unlike anyone else, within 5 days of this happening, I laid out a detailed plan. You have to move from military aid to giving to the middle class there. The middle class is overwhelmingly the majority. They get no connection with the US. We have to significantly increase our economic aid relative to education, relative to NGOs, relative to all those things that make a difference in the lives of ordinary people over there, and not be doing it through the military side.

Source: 2007 Democratic debate in Las Vegas, Nevada Nov 15, 2007

Pakistani elections will be a sham if emergency not lifted

Q: General Musharraf, the president of Pakistan, says the elections are going to take place before the 9th of January. But there is no word when the state of national emergency is going to be lifted. And a lot of critics are already saying how can you go ahead and campaign, how can you have elections, how can the opposition operate if this state of emergency continues.

A: Well, it can't. Musharraf called me about six days ago. I had a long conversation with him. And he indicated to me that the elections would go off within this 60-day timeframe, that he would take off his uniform, and that as soon as possible before--BEFORE--the election date, the state of emergency would be lifted. Absent him lifting the state of emergency, this will be a sham. And if he does not do that, then I think there is not much hope for there to be the kind of accommodation and power sharing that everybody hopes will occur as a consequence of this election.

Source: CNN Late Edition: 2007 presidential series with Wolf Blitzer Nov 11, 2007

Pakistan is potentially most dangerous country in the world

Q: [to Biden]: Why isn't Senator Obama ready?

BIDEN: Look, I think he's a wonderful guy. It was about Pakistan we were talking about. The fact of the matter is, Pakistan is potentially the most dangerous country in the world. A significant minority of jihadists with nuclear weapons. We have no Pakistan policy; we have a Musharraf policy. That's a bad policy. The policy should be based upon a long-term relationship with Pakistan and stability. We should be encouraging free elections. There is an overwhelming majority of moderates in that country. They should have their day.

Q: But when you were asked, "Is he ready?" you said, "I think he can be ready, but right now I don't believe he is. The presidency is not something that lends itself to on-the-job training."

BIDEN: I think I stand by the statement.

OBAMA: If we have Osama bin Laden in our sights and we've exhausted all other options, we should take him out before he plans to kill another 3,000 Americans. I think that's common sense

Source: 2007 Democratic primary debate on "This Week" Aug 19, 2007

China holds the mortgage on our house, to pay for war

Q: Is China an ally or an adversary?

A: They're neither. The fact of the matter is, though, they hold the mortgage on our house. This administration, in order to fund a war that shouldn't be being fought and tax cuts that weren't needed for the wealthy--we're now in debt almost a trillion dollars to China. We better end that war, cut those taxes, reduce the deficit and make sure that they no longer own the mortgage on our home.

Source: 2007 AFL-CIO Democratic primary forum Aug 8, 2007

American troops on the ground in Darfur now

Q: In the past, you've talked about NATO troops in Darfur. What about American troops?

A: Absolutely, positively. Look, I'm so tired of this. I heard the same arguments after I came back from meeting with Milosevic: We can't act; we can't send troops there. Where we can, America must. Why Darfur? Because we can. We should now. Those kids will be dead by the time the diplomacy is over. 2500 American troops can stop the genocide now. I have called for a no-fly zone, but you need troops on the ground.
Source: 2007 YouTube Democratic Primary debate, Charleston SC Jul 23, 2007

US troops on ground in Sudan to end Darfur carnage

Q [to Sen. Dodd]: Darfur is the second time that our nation has had a chance to do something about genocide in Africa. The first came in Rwanda in 1994, when we did nothing.

DODD: We've unfortunately, as a result of our conflict in Iraq, have lost our moral authority. And as a result of that, our ability to mobilize the world on issues like Darfur has been severely damaged. But the United States should be able to take some unilateral action here

BIDEN: I have been calling for three years to stop talking and start acting. We don't have to wait to get out of Iraq to regain our moral authority. We've lost part of our moral authority because we stood by and watched this carnage. And if need be, if the rest of the world will not act, we should, and should have already--two years ago--imposed a no-fly zone, and we should have--two years ago, absent the willingness of the rest of the world to act--put American troops on the ground to stop the carnage.

Source: 2007 Democratic Primary Debate at Howard University Jun 28, 2007

Biggest threat to US is from North Korea, Iran, & Russia

Q: What three nations, other than Iraq, represent, to you, the biggest threat to the United States?

A: The biggest threat to the US is, right now, North Korea. Iran not as big a threat, but a long-term threat. And quite frankly, the tendency of Putin to move in a totalitarian direction, which would unhinge all that's going on positively in Europe.
Source: 2007 South Carolina Democratic primary debate, on MSNBC Apr 26, 2007

Voted YES on enlarging NATO to include Eastern Europe.

H.R. 3167; Gerald B. H. Solomon Freedom Consolidation Act of 2001, To endorse the vision of further enlargement of the NATO Alliance. Vote to pass a bill that would support further expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, authorize military assistance to several eastern European countries and lift assistance restrictions on Slovakia.

Reference: Bill HR.3167 ; vote number 2002-116 on May 17, 2002

Voted YES on killing a bill for trade sanctions if China sells weapons.

Vote to table [kill] an amendment that would require sanctions against China or other countries if they were found to be selling illicit weapons of mass destruction.

Reference: Bill HR.4444 ; vote number 2000-242 on Sep 13, 2000

Voted NO on cap foreign aid at only $12.7 billion.

Adoption of the conference report on the 2000 Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill provided $12.7 billion for foreign aid programs in 2000.

Status: Conf Rpt Agreed to Y)51; N)49

Reference: H.R. 2606 Conference Report; Bill H.R. 2606 ; vote number 1999-312 on Oct 6, 1999

Voted NO on limiting the President's power to impose economic sanctions.

To kill a proposal limiting President Clinton's ability to impose economic sanctions on foreign nations.

Status: Motion to Table Agreed to Y)53; N)46; NV)1

Reference: Motion to table the Lugar Amdt #3156.; Bill S. 2159 ; vote number 1998-201 on Jul 15, 1998

Voted NO on limiting NATO expansion to only Poland, Hungary & Czech.

This amendment would have limited NATO Expansion to only include Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic.

Status: Amdt Rejected Y)41; N)59

Reference: NATO Expansion limit-Warner Amdt. #2322; Bill NATO Expansion Treaty #105-36 ; vote number 1998-112 on Apr 30, 1998

Voted YES on $17.9 billion to IMF.

Would provide $17.9 billion for the International Monetary Fund.

Status: Amdt Agreed to Y)84; N)16

Reference: McConnell Amdt #2100; Bill S. 1768 ; vote number 1998-44 on Mar 26, 1998

Voted YES on Strengthening of the trade embargo against Cuba.

Strengthening of the trade embargo against Cuba.

Status: Conf Rpt Agreed to Y)74; N)22; NV)4

Reference: Conference Report on H.R. 927; Bill H.R. 927 ; vote number 1996-22 on Mar 5, 1996

Voted YES on ending Vietnam embargo.

Ending U.S. trade embargos on the country of Vietnam.

Status: Amdt Agreed to Y)62; N)38

Reference: For. Reltns. Auth. Act FY 94 & 95; Bill S. 1281 ; vote number 1994-5 on Jan 27, 1994

Multi-year commitment to Africa for food & medicine.

Biden co-sponsored the Hunger to Harvest bill:
In an effort to reduce hunger in sub-Saharan Africa, urges the President to:

set forth five-year and ten-year strategies to achieve a reversal of current levels of hunger and poverty in sub-Saharan Africa, including a commitment to contribute an appropriate U.S. share of increased bilateral and multilateral poverty-focused resources for sub-Saharan Africa, with an emphasis on health (including HIV-AIDS prevention and treatment), education, agriculture, private sector and free market development, democratic institutions and the rule of law, micro-finance development, and debt relief; and
work with the heads of other donor countries and sub-Saharan African countries and with private and voluntary organizations and other civic organizations to implement such strategies; and calls for
Congress to undertake a multi-year commitment to provide the resources to implement those strategies; and
the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development to report on such implementation.

Source: House Resolution Sponsorship 01-HCR102 on Apr 4, 2001

Impose sanctions and an import ban on Burma.

Biden sponsored imposing sanctions and an import ban on Burma.

A bill to impose sanctions on officials of the State Peace and Development Council in Burma, to prohibit the importation of gemstones and hardwoods from Burma, & to promote a coordinated international effort to restore civilian democratic rule to Burma.

Source: Burma Democracy Promotion Act (S.2257 & S.2172) 07-S2257 on Oct 29, 2007

Acknowledge the Armenian Genocide of the early 1900s.

Biden co-sponsored acknowledging the Armenian Genocide of the early 1900s

WHEREAS the Armenian Genocide was conceived and carried out by the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to 1923, resulting in the deportation of nearly 2,000,000 Armenians, of whom 1,500,000 men, women, and children were killed, and which succeeded in the elimination of more than 2,500-year presence of Armenians in their historic homeland;
WHEREAS, on May 24, 1915, the Allied Powers issued the joint statement of England, France, and Russia that explicitly charged, for the first time ever, another government of committing "a crime against humanity";
WHEREAS, despite the international recognition of the Armenian Genocide, the failure of the domestic and international authorities to punish those responsible for the Armenian Genocide is a reason why similar genocides have recurred and may recur in the future, and that a just resolution will help prevent future genocides:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Senate calls on the President, in the President's annual message commemorating the Armenian Genocide, to accurately characterize the systematic annihilation of 1,500,000 Armenians as genocide and to recall the proud history of US intervention in opposition to the Armenian Genocide.

Source: Armenian Genocide Resolution (S.RES.106/H.RES.106) 2007-SR106 on Mar 14, 2007

Urge Venezuela to re-open dissident radio & TV stations.

Biden co-sponsored urging Venezuela to re-open dissident radio & TV stations

WHEREAS for several months, the President of Venezuela, Hugo Chávez, has been announcing over various media that he will not renew the current concession of the television station "Radio Caracas Televisión", also known as RCTV, which is set to expire on May 27, 2007, because of its adherence to an editorial stance different from his way of thinking;
WHEREAS President Chavez justifies this measure based on the alleged role RCTV played in the unsuccessful unconstitutional attempts in April 2002 to unseat President Chavez, under circumstances where there exists no filed complaint or judicial sentence that would sustain such a charge under Venezuelan law;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Senate--
(1) expresses its profound concern about the transgression against freedom of thought and expression that is being committed in Venezuela by the refusal of the President Hugo Chavez to renew the concession of RCTV
(2) strongly encourages the Organization of American States to respond appropriately, with full consideration of the necessary institutional instruments, to such transgression.

Source: Radio Caracas Resolution (S.RES.211) 2007-SR211 on May 21, 2007

Sarah Palin On Foreign Relations

Palin Believes The Founding Fathers Wrote The Pledge Of Allegiance

In 2006, when asked by the Eagle Forum Alaska if she found the phrase “Under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance offensive, Palin replied, “Not on your life. If it was good enough for the founding fathers, it’s good enough for me.” But the words “Under God” didn’t appear in the Pledge until 1954. The Pledge itself wasn’t written until 1892.

Source: Huffington Post, 9/1/08; Slate, 6/28/02

Palin traveled very little outside United States

According to the N Y Times on Saturday, Sarah Palin did not have a passport in 2007 when she was about to take a trip to Kuwait :

Ms. Palin appears to have traveled very little outside the United States. In July 2007, she had to get a passport before she visited members of the Alaska National Guard stationed in Kuwait, according to her deputy communications director, Sharon Leighow.

Peace Corps strengthens US ties abroad & enriches US at home

The Peace Corps has become an enduring symbol of our nation's commitment to encourage progress, create opportunity, and expand development at the grass-roots level in the developing world.
More than 187,000 Americans have served as Peace Corps volunteers in 139 countries since 1961 [including] 837 men and women from the State of Alaska.
Peace Corps volunteers have strengthened the ties of friendship and understanding among the people of the US and those of other countries.
Peace Corp volunteers, enriched by their experiences overseas, have brought to their communities throughout the US, a deeper understanding of other cultures and traditions, thereby bringing a domestic dividend to our nation.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Sarah Palin, Governor of the State of Alaska, do hereby proclaim February 26-March 4, 2007, as: Peace Corps Week in Alaska, and encourage all Alaskans to recognize the achievements of the Peace Corps.

Source: Alaska Governor's Office: Proclamation, "Peace Corps" Jan 29, 2007