Michael McFaul: Biden "would restore American leadership and respect in the world overnight"

[highplainsdem]

Michael McFaul, former ambassador to Russia during the Obama administration, tweeted this a few minutes ago:

Link to tweet

Other candidates have their strong suits, but on national security and foreign policy, Biden is the most qualified candidate in either party. I worked with him for five years in the Obama Administration. He would restore American leadership and respect in the world overnight.

[LakeArenal]

1. True, that!

[IndyOp]

2. I admire McFaul - his opinions matter a lot to me. (nt)

[Sloumeau]

3. highplainsdem, thanks for posting this. :)

This is more good news for Joe Biden!

[Thekaspervote]

4. Yes, that is good news. I for one would sleep a whole lot better!!

[CaptainTruth]

5. I agree. It's one of the unique aspects of Biden.

[Mme. Defarge]

6. OMG!!!

It has just occurred to me that it isn’t Trump who doesn’t want Biden to be the Democratic candidate,
IT’S PUTIN.

[Duppers]

8. And that's exactly why I'm supporting Biden.

Best chance of beating the Russian-controlled Republican party.

[elleng]

14. YES

[highplainsdem]

31. Yes. Just as Putin didn't want HRC to be the Democratic candidate, let alone president.

[Mme. Defarge]

34. Putin has orchestrated the entire scheme.

[wiley]

38. Yes!

Biden has no need, nor interest in groveling for Putin's money nor love.

[Cha]

7. Booom! HawaiianDelilah replies..

Link to tweet

Retweeted.. Mahalo, hpd!

[Dem2theMax]

9. That is exactly why my vote goes to Biden.

[Perseus]

21. Why? You don't believe any of the other Democratic candidates would also restore USA in the

eyes of the World?

What makes that an exclusive of Biden?

I feel all the Democratic candidates are able to to do that and more, lets face it, trump is not normal. Democratic candidates are all principled people, they are decent, they understand government, protocol, and they all know how to behave.

I understand Biden supporters trying to sell this as an exclusive of Biden, but I feel it is very unfair to all the other candidates when they too will, if elected, restore our standing in the World, restore our alliances, push back on Russia and Putin, restore all the good that Obama left, reverse the Tax cuts, and most of them will fight for "Universal Healthcare", and "free Education for All".

[emmaverybo]

22. World leaders know and trust him. He has a stature on the world stage that others do not.

None of the others have his foreign policy experience. Newbies are easily taken advantage of. Obama wanted him as VP because of his FP cred. All qualifications are not equal.

Voters have to decide which qualifications are most important to them. Others have a progressive vision they feel Biden lacks.

Personally, I care more about world leadership.

Snip————————-
World leaders tell Biden: We need you

The former vice president would bring deep relationships and heavyweight credentials to a 2020 Democratic field lacking in national security experience.

https://www.politico.com/story/2019/03/20/biden-2020-foreign-policy-national-security-1228345

[Dem2theMax]

27. Thank you for the wonderful reply to the above.

[highplainsdem]

30. +1,000,000

[Thekaspervote]

32. +1000

[renate]

37. I agree--world leaders' trust in us would be restored overnight

Can you imagine the sighs of relief from all over the world? It’d be like having a boot removed from their necks.

[padah513]

39. This right here

[Perseus]

66. the sighs of relief will happen once trump is out, any of the Democrats will do that

I think the other Democratic candidates are being underestimated on this blog, and I feel it is done on purpose. I am not saying Biden would not do it, of course he will, but it is naive to think that he and only he holds the key.

[Cha]

69. Democratic Underground is Not a "blog".. it is

a political discussion board. It has lots of input from EW supporters and all the candidates' supporters.. some less than others.

I have no idea what you are even talking about here...

"..and I feel it is done on purpose."

You know the Admins are in charge of this board, right? If you have problem with the way members are posting then you should it up with them.

And, guess what.. Michael McFaul said this about VP Biden who worked with him for 5 years".. so I'm going to take his word over anyone complaining about how this board is run.. calling it.. "done on purpose"

[Cha]

48. Mahalo, emmaverybo!

[Wawannabe]

60. Why are you asking this ONE poster ?

I question your agenda - highly!
The OP is a twitter statement and the poster agrees and says this is why they vote Biden and you call this one person out?? - of all others here who have said the same thing in their own words.

Your undecided election for this group is bogus! Who do you support? Who do you say can instantly restore the US on the world stage??? Hide behind your undecided! We see you!

[karynnj]

62. I agree

All of them, like Obama, would represent a welcome relief in the world - in fact, a bigger contrast than even Bush/Obama.

For those with less foreign policy experience, the National security team will be more important than for Biden. For any of them, Biden included, the important thing is to be comfortable that they can create a good team, can listen to diverse input from them and make decisions, and that their vision of where we want to be in the world is good.

[enid602]

10. Kamala

But I'd like to see Kamala as VP.

[padah513]

41. True, she'd be an excellent VP choice, but

I'd like to see her as AG. She'd have republicans quaking in their boots.

[Cha]

11. Mchael McFaul on trump's bribery attempts..

Link to tweet

[highplainsdem]

33. Thanks, Cha!

[Cha]

44. You're Welcome.. Thank You, hpd!

[The Valley Below]

12. Yes he would.

Overnight.

[Karadeniz]

13. Yes, after years of Trump's chaos, criminality, abusing allies, the world probably needs Biden

As representing a return to normalcy. I don't agree with him on all issues, but we may not be emotionally ready for a very progressive president right now, much as I'd like that. We might need to rest for a while.

[The Valley Below]

18. This Democrat measures "progress" by what one actually gets done,

not by big talk or by howling at the moon, but by passing legislation to implement new laws and using the bully-pulpit to change the culture.

I think Biden will be one of the most progressive presidents ever. I think he has a tremendous ability to work across the aisle and he will get things passed. I think he will get the Public Option passed. That will be huge. A huge victory.

I think Joe Biden has a chance to be one of the most progressive presidents in generations.

And he will positively change the culture in all sorts of ways. It was Joe who turned the tide on marriage equality. He can turn people. He has a gift. And young people will have a very different role model that they have now. To say the least.

[oasis]

15. Biden's the One.

[The Valley Below]

20. He is.

[Perseus]

16. Anyone of the Democratic candidates will do that, it is not exclusive to Biden

[AlexSFCA]

24. but only Biden will do it overnight

[highplainsdem]

26. That's not true, for the reasons McFaul mentions.

[Perseus]

67. McFaul has an opinion, its just that, and opinion to push Biden as the preferred candidate.

I don't think its good to underestimate the rest of the Democratic field, they all have the capacity, and some of them bring more to the table, maybe not on the international side, but on the national side although they will be able to do the same internationally as Biden would.

I know Biden is capable of doing it, no doubt in my mind about it, but I repeat, its not exclusive to him and there is nothing that says he would do it better than any one else in the Democratic party.

[highplainsdem]

68. McFaul's opinion isn't just an opinion. It's an expert opinion. Just as Biden has national security

and foreign policy expertise the other candidates don't have.

[tiredtoo]

17. And who

will restore the American workers self respect? Think about it.

[The Valley Below]

19. "My dad used to say, 'you know Joey a job isn't just about a paycheck....

[Bleacher Creature]

23. I agree that Biden would have the best chance, but nobody is fixing this mess overnight.

The damage is far too great.

[highplainsdem]

25. McFaul is absolutely correct that Biden would restore American leadership and respect in the world

overnight.

Yes, there will be problems to deal with.

But none of the other candidates have the foreign policy credentials -- and credibility -- that Biden has. They would have to earn it, and that could take quite a bit of time.

[rusty quoin]

28. Everyone says yeah. Who's next for push-up challenge?

I got a problem.

[Cha]

29. Michael McFaul is absolutely correct.

[NBachers]

35. That's what I've been saying all along PLUS Joe knows how to re-assemble the broken

sabotaged government, and he has an already proven working relationship with the people he'll need to do it.

Put Joe Biden in last week's NATO summit - He'd fit right in and be accepted and welcomed. He's one of them.

Do shit I don't like? Sure he'd do shit I don't like. I used to get teeth-gritting sputtering pissed off at some of the neo-con stuff Clinton did. Obama? You think I didn't have my disappointments with him and his incremental carefulness along the way? Of course I did. You'll never get the entire package you personally want. But the stakes are too high right now not to go with Biden.

The stakes were too high when Johnson was driven out of office and the door was opened for Nixon the Crook.

The stakes were too high to "conscience vote" for Nader and open the door for Bush the Idiot King and war and chaos in the world.

The stakes were too high to "purity vote" for Sanders and allow Trump to create the Universe of Horrors we find ourselves in.

Do we have to learn the lesson again, with fascist Nazi-ism growing in our land and our world cooking itself to death, by diverting our votes out of the Democratic mainstream and up some political tributary?

[murielm99]

36. Excellent post.

I have never in my life found a candidate or elected politician whose actions and words were perfect, if that means I agreed with everything they said and did. It means that they have made mistakes, and sometimes made decisions I did not agree with.

The perfect is the enemy of the good.

[Cha]

47. Well Done, Bachers!

Thank you!

[oasis]

56. +1,000,000,000

[Garrett78]

40. Even without the national security and foreign policy credentials, every serious Dem candidate...

...would do the same. Most of the world, a few dictators aside, will celebrate any Dem who replaces Trump.

[Cha]

45. But Michael McFaul ".. worked with Biden for 5 years.." so

he knows personally what Joe Biden can do..

Link to tweet

[Hortensis]

50. Most Dem candidates would be reassuring, yes, but only Biden

has the experience and stature McFaul is also talking about.

[Tarheel_Dem]

42. K&R

[BlueMTexpat]

43. Actually, ANY ONE of

our Dem candidates - who actually ARE Dems - would do that.

Look at what they're being measured against.

[highplainsdem]

55. That's incorrect, for the reasons McFaul gives. Yes, any of our candidates

would be an improvement on Trump. Almost anyone would.

But Biden's election would have the greatest impact, and an immediate impact, and none of his Democratic rivals would come close to him in that regard.

[BlueMTexpat]

65. We'll have to agree to

disagree on that.

[Cha]

70. I thought so, too.. even before Michael McFaul

came out and said this from his 5 years of actually working with VP Biden.

Of course, supporters of other candidates disagree with Michael McFaul.

[Wawannabe]

61. ...

[Cha]

46. Michael McFaul "..worked with Biden for 5 years.." so he

knows up close and personally what Joe Biden can do.

Link to tweet

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

49. Trust will improve, but it'll take a lot to un-fuck the Syrian Kurds, ...

... or the people of Russia-occupied Ukraine.

Trump has done some long-term damage.

[Fyrefox]

51. A return to sanity...

We are soul-weary of the incompetence, dishonesty, and self-serving ethos of the Trump administration. Restoration of what we were as a nation will take time, but the healing could begin with a collective sigh of relief under Biden...

[Pachamama]

52. +1000000

Completely agree

[DCofVA]

53. Let's be realistic here. No matter who the next Democratic President will be...

In 2021 (if they run a great campaign). It’s going to take a lot of work and time to regain the respect of the world. Civility is the number one attribute the other world leaders have been missing the most from the current American leader. Can the candidate who calls a man he disagrees with, “a damn liar”, be trusted to return us and the world, to civility?

[LongtimeAZDem]

54. If the person is a damn liar, yes; in fact, that will be a core component of defeating Trump

[Cha]

64. Michael McFaul worked with Joe Biden for 5 years so

he knows first hand and up close and personal what Joe Biden can do.

[Scurrilous]

57. K&R

[bluestarone]

58. Fully agree!

[Wawannabe]

59. Well, duh!

[treestar]

63. Listening to the Hillary interview where she discusses

Obama asking her to be SOS. I thought if it is not Biden who gets the nomination, he ought to be the first term SOS.

[Cha]

71. Kicking!

[Cha]

72. This needs to be up front!

Thank you again!

[apnu]

73. A ficus plant and a recycled brick would also restore US respect over night.

Trump is that bad.

Under W we were a laughing stock, but under Trump the world, rightly, sees us as shit.

[Cha]

74. K!