Hillary On Debt And Damage

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton addressed a group of us today at the Council on Foreign Relations. Once again, she demonstrated just how capable a leader and policy expert she is. We are in very good hands here, indeed, whatever your concerns may be about President Obama.

In this age of vapid leadership, here's a brilliant, articulate, thoughtful, credible, forceful, and no-nonsense woman who is working against all odds to repair the systematic damage done over the past decade to our global standing and effectiveness. One measure of the diminution of U.S. diplomacy in recent years, for example, comes in the fact that the United States has more people in military marching bands than we do working as diplomats. That's nothing to trumpet, for sure.

Council President Richard Haass asked Secretary Clinton whether and how our mind-numbing national debt interferes with the protection and projection of U.S. economic, diplomatic, and national security interests overseas. Amidst so much political trash-talking these days on the subjects of debt and deficits, Secretary Clinton response was as informed and impassioned as it was sobering.

She told us "there is no free lunch" and that our profligate record of deficit spending certainly does constrain our capacity to act internationally. "It sends a message of weakness abroad," she added. While suggesting that "we don't have to relitigate how we got here," she then did just that by reminding us that the U.S. attempted to wage two wars and make excessively large tax cuts without any mechanism to pay for these choices. So be it, lest we ever forget these financially calamitous follies of the recent past. How could we, it would seem, since we are paying for them in triplicate?

Secretary Clinton concluded by saying that "responsible voices are not being heard right now" on the subjects of debt and deficits. Well no kidding! It's only going to get worse between now and the November elections. At least we have one responsible voice on this and other subjects who merits our continued support and gratitude.