In what may seem an ironic twist, President Bush must win the support of America's foreign allies for war with Iraq if he is to be successful at home, according to Thomas Schwartz, an expert on contemporary U.S. foreign policy.
"While we often think of the president of the United States as having two jobs -- domestic and foreign policy -- the two are very much intertwined throughout history," said Schwartz, an associate professor of history at Vanderbilt University and the author of the upcoming book, Lyndon Johnson and Europe: In the Shadow of Vietnam (Harvard University Press). "An important part of the President's effort to win domestic support comes from the perception that we have the backing of our allies overseas."
Schwartz also said that while the opinions of America's allies matter greatly, and their leaders want their advice to be taken seriously, domestic constituencies remain paramount for the U.S. president.
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