If you did not already know, GW hosted Warren Christopher, Henry Kissinger, Madeleine Albright, James Baker, and Colin Powell for a CNN special on foreign policy and the issues facing the next presidency. GW Discourse had a front row seat to what was arguably one the most high profile events GW has hosted in recent memory.
Among the highlights was a frank discussion about genocide and the role of the U.S. in preventing it. There was some light sparring over whether the U.S. should always intervene. In the case of Darfur, Colin Powell admittedly called the actions in Darfur genocide while the United Nations did not. Without the UN sanctioning the actions as genocide, the world has arguably neglected the atrocities in that area.
There was also a some terrific comments from Henry Kissinger about the problems of 24-hour media. An ironic comment considering the event was being aired by CNN. Throughout his comment, co-host Christiane Amanpour was desperately trying to get a rebuttal argument in, but was unable to as she was cut off by other Secretaries on the stage. I wonder if this will make it on air this Saturday.
Another interesting point made by Colin Powell was how often the domestic and the foreign affairs side of politics intersect. Colin Powell admitted to talking with the Iranian Foreign Minister at a dinner and asking him what the greatest concern to the people of Iran is. The Foreign Minister responded by saying Iran has a young population and needs to create over half a million jobs in the next few years. Lastly, on the discussion of the presidency, Colin Powell was very careful not to indicate whom he would endorse.
Overall, it was an interesting event, and it is not often that you see all of these people in the same room discussing these issues. Other issues discussed included American power, our approval abroad, climate change, Iraq, and few other topics. GW plans to host several more events throughout the semester about issues facing the next presidency and this was a great start.
-Timothy Little, Editor-in-Chief
