How much difference would McCain make in US foreign policy?
What we have is a Republican candidate who in some measure mirrors Bushs domestic and foreign policies – albeit in a sort of Bush-lite version. With regard to Iraq and Iran he has been arguably more hard-nosed and bellicose in his recent rhetoric than the Bush administration. But if McCain has not repudiated Bushs approach or the basic contours of US foreign policy in the last seven years, there are some noteworthy shifts expressed in his positions during the campaign. His embrace of multilateralism offers a refreshing antidote to the clumsy and counterproductive diplomacy of the Bush years (At one point it seemed that Donald Rumsfeld was the only bull who carried his own china shop with him wherever he went). His past commitment to dialogue with Europe and his assurance during the campaign leave little doubt that a McCain administration would have more credibility with its NATO allies. His vow to banish torture and to close Guantnamo are important distinctions separating him from the
