Returning to Reaganism
By Natasha Srdoc and Joel Anand Samy
On June 3, 2009, we witnessed the unveiling of a 7-foot bronze statue of Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United States in the packed room of the spacious Capitol Rotunda filled with former Reagan administration officials, a bipartisan representation from both houses of Congress, supporters and admirers of Reagan. Notably, embedded in the 500 pound sculpture are a few pieces of the Berlin Wall which was torn down 20 years ago.
"It will stand forever as a silent sentry in these hallowed halls, to teach our children and our grandchildren about that which once was and to inspire them with visions of that which can be again - today, tomorrow and unto the generations," said James Baker III, Reagan's close aide and treasury secretary.
Reagan’s belief, “Concentrated power has always been the enemy of liberty,” affirmed the call for liberating hopeful Europeans who lived behind the Iron Curtain. President Ronald Reagan’s strategic vision of liberty for all the peoples, peace through strength and bold foreign policy initiatives transformed their world. In 1989, the Berlin Wall was brought down and Reagan’s principled leadership in confronting the “evil empire” with trusted allies yielded historic results.
Americans came to realize that a formidable adversary led by the communist elite and based on a command and control system that deprived individuals of liberty lay in destructed form. The Cold War as we knew it came to an end. And, liberty prevailed over tyranny and oppressive communist governments in Eastern Europe.
The American citizens’ clear stance on liberty born out of its Founding Fathers’ vision in upholding the first principles made America emerge as a defender of liberty during the turbulent 20th century.
More than 420,000 American lives were lost fighting Nazi Germany during World War II in a prolonged campaign to seizing victory over tyranny and liberating millions of Europeans. In a sobering reflection, over six million European Jews were sent to their deaths.
Through its leadership in advancing liberty, the United States contributed to rebuilding Europe. America’s long-term commitment to Europe’s peace and prosperity is an extraordinary achievement.
During the last decade of the 20th century when the Balkan conflicts erupted, deep cracks were revealed within Europe’s leadership ranks. Europe’s leaders lacked decisive leadership in resolving post-World War II’s most horrific act whereby genocide took the lives of 200,000 civilians and led to 4 million individuals fleeing their homes.
Yet, once again, through America’s leadership which was supported by Lady Thatcher’s call for just intervention in the region brought an end to the bloodshed in the Balkans with the direct engagement of NATO’s forces.
History clearly reveals that Western and Eastern Europeans are beneficiaries of liberty that was borne by American citizens through extraordinary efforts of fielding American troops and military hardware and technology on European soil.
On September 11, 2001, the frontal attack on liberty came to America’s soil. We all witnessed the vivid manifestation of the real threat to liberty when a group of terrorists recruited and motivated by Islamic Jihadists killed thousands of innocent civilians by using commercial airplanes as missiles to attack New York City and Washington, DC.
Regrettably, liberty continues to be under attack by corrupt authoritarian regimes and extremist terrorist groups who are both driven by self-interests to preserve their oppressive rule over individuals. What these groups have in common is no different from former communist regimes that discarded the rule of law, protection of property rights and freedom of speech.
Yet, in a post-September 11 world, some political elitists in European nations began to question America’s leadership and criticize the legitimacy of advancing liberty. Instead, they should remember the positive changes that America’s initiatives and its long-term commitment brought to the European continent.
America’s call to combat global terror around the world and the extended engagements in Afghanistan and Iraq should give no reason for some in European quarters to doubt America’s resolve in advancing liberty.
Stalwarts in the American conservative arena began questioning then presidential candidate Barack Obama’s statements about America’s leadership in the global arena. And since he took office, conservative leaders have further pointed out that President Obama’s statements and actions are creating confusion and weakening America’s leadership position when making apologies on behalf of America.
In a timely and relevant book titled “Liberty’s Best Hope,” Vice President of Foreign and Defense Policy at the Heritage Foundation and former Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs, Dr. Kim Holmes clearly articulates real concerns about the future of America’s leadership in the 21st century and provides a clear blueprint to guide policymakers and elected officials for American leadership in a turbulent world.
Dr. Holmes believes that “the vision of a tamed America following the rest of the world is our future unless we restore Reagan’s faith in America.”
Dr. Holmes moved on more strategic ground when he questioned the speech that President Obama delivered in Cairo, Egypt addressing the Muslim world. In a recent statement, Dr. Holmes said, “He [President Obama] could have been more explicit about Islamist extremism of the non-violent kind and the dangers it poses to the ideals of individual freedom and religious liberty. He addressed it indirectly by expressing the U.S. commitment to democratic values but he should have been more direct in order to provide moral support for Muslims around the world who are themselves fighting against such ideologies. By avoiding using the word ‘Islamist,’ he is downplaying the ideological underpinnings for terrorism. Obama is right that we should not equate terrorism with the religion of Islam, but we also need to be ready to engage in the battle of ideas and be clear when political Islam contradicts the ideals of individual freedom and religious liberty.”
In his intriguing and applicable book, Dr. Holmes concludes by stating, “Above all, we need to revive the idea that standing for and spreading liberty is the central idea of our foreign policy. It is not only our idea – like any other nation, we have security interests – but it is the central and unique idea of our leadership. We strive for an international system of nation-states that respect liberty, self government, the rule of law, property rights and equal justice under law.”
Terrorist groups and organized crime are parasites that can only survive in environments where there is an absence of the rule of law and significant political corruption.
For the sake of people living under oppressive regimes as well as for the security of the American people at home, liberty has to prevail. America’s long-established moral authority in defending liberty around the world is very much needed in today’s tumultuous world. American foreign policy should reflect the American people’s quest and its exceptional generosity to bringing the building blocks of liberty based on first principles to the rest of the world.
President Ronald Reagan’s words are timeless, “America's foreign policy supports freedom, democracy, and human dignity for all mankind, and we make no apologies for it. The opportunity society that we want for ourselves we also want for others, not because we're imposing our system on others but because those opportunities belong to all people as God-given birthrights and because by promoting democracy and economic opportunity we make peace more secure.”
- Natasha Srdoc and Joel Anand Samy are co-Founders of the Adriatic Institute for Public Policy the International Leaders Summit.
