China’s President, Hu Jintao, just visited Manmuhan Singh, Prime Minister of India. A decade ago, that meeting would not have been particularly significant. But today, we must notice when the heads of the world’s two largest countries – with growing economic, military, and political power – get together.
Since the fall of the Soviet Union, the United States has been the world’s only superpower. China and India are now challenging that position. If these two build strong alliances, they will become even more formidable than they already are. A world disillusioned with the U.S. is looking for the balance this will bring.
There are many reasons powerful nations collapse. Their economic models may fail, as with Britain and its colonial empire or the Soviet Union and Communism. They may extend their reach beyond what they can hold, as Rome did. Others may suffer a catastrophic failure of leadership, like the Mongol Empire after the death of Genghis Khan. Some may wither because of corruption or arrogance or squandering political, economic and diplomatic assets.
The Bush administration’s abysmal leadership has set us up for a crash on a number of fronts if we don’t solve the massive problems that face us. This is a challenge the new Democratic leaders in Congress must take on or they will fail also.
Let’s start with diplomacy. The cheering around the world on Nov. 8 was testimony not to the popularity of Democrats but to the level of rage over the scorn and contempt with which the Bush administration has treated other countries. The president and new congressional leaders must now reach out to other nations with respect and a willingness to listen. Not only do we desperately need their help with Iraq, but we also must be able to persuade them of the value of our goals. A country that wants to remain the most important power in the world must be seen as a worthy moral leader, not just a military bully.
Iraq is the elephant threatening to squash us. It is sapping our wealth, killing and maiming our children, destroying our credibility and proving to our enemies that we are not militarily invincible. Here Democrats must provide leadership. It is irresponsible to say, as Democratic Sen.Barakh Obama did recently, that we should stop “coddling” Iraq. We created the mess, destroyed their institutions, abominable as many of those were, failed to provide security and stirred up a civil war in the process. Taking responsibility for helping to fix the chaos we created is not “coddling” anyone.
If there is any chance for an honorable exit from Iraq, it must be based on the best thinking and leadership of congressional Democrats and the administration, not to mention our allies. This has to include determining what to do about an impossibly weak Iraqi government and recognizing that an occupying force cannot stop a civil war. Only a massive international diplomatic effort has a chance of succeeding. We need to resolve how we’ll rebuild the devastated infrastructure that can’t even supply basic Iraqi oil needs, much less anything else, and restart the Iraqi economy.
In the domestic arena, Democrats must lead in turning around the fiscal nightmare of the Bush years. No great country can remain strong on an ocean of debt, dependent on investment from foreign countries to keep it afloat. Cutting taxes and massively increasing spending is a formula for disaster. Forget about the huge costs of war – Medicare and Social Security will drown us and our children over the next several decades. No longer should we tolerate political leaders who won’t tackle these problems that threaten our existence as a global power.
The new Democratic leaders in Congress and the deflated Republican president have an opportunity to prove they are up to the task of leading a great nation in a very critical time. With China and India peering over our shoulder, they must fulfill this responsibility.
Gail Schoettler (gailschoettler@email.msn.com) is a former U.S. ambassador, Colorado lieutenant governor and treasurer, Democratic nominee for governor and Douglas County school board member.
