Abstract
Barack Obama’s mandate began with an effort to distance him-self from the excesses of his predecessor. The Bush administration itself had all but admitted the conclusion of the Bush revolution, due foremost to the multiplying costs of the unanticipated insurgency in Iraq, which ended up producing ten times the casualties of the war to oust Saddam.1 The wider Bush agenda in the Middle East was abandoned; the United States involved its NATO allies in operations in Afghanistan; opened up a multilateral dialogue to convince North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons program; and mended relations with Russia, China, France, and Germany. Furthermore, the fall of 2008 produced the most serious economic crisis since the Great Depression, which diminished the resources available for an assertive US foreign policy.2
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
