How Joe Biden will determine Republican foreign policy
![President Biden.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/BokgfMDPpe56XyMNQEtWuJ-415-80.jpg)
Russia's possible incursion into Ukraine will have repercussions here at home, not least in the intraconservative debate over foreign policy.
Under former President Trump, it became easier to make antiwar arguments to conventional Republicans because his instincts — if not always his policies or personnel choices — were against foreign intervention in most cases. Principled skeptics of George W. Bush's approach to these questions and partisans found themselves aligned.
That has gotten harder under President Biden. When Trump wanted to pull out of Afghanistan, conservatives who agreed were supporting the Republican administration's position. When Biden did pull out of Afghanistan in a particularly messy fashion, conservatives who wanted to keep the 20-year-old war going regained some of the ground they lost with the base.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Biden's response to a Russian invasion of Ukraine will be similarly clarifying. There are plenty of conservative influencers warning against intervention. "You should be against going to war with Russia," tweeted Charlie Kirk of Turning Point USA. "Worth repeating: Our leaders care more about Ukraine's border than they do our own," tweeted Hillbilly Elegy author and Ohio Republican Senate candidate J.D. Vance. Tucker Carlson has been beating the drums against an active U.S. role, including letting Ukraine in NATO, on his nightly show.
But a lot will depend on what Biden does. The default Republican position will be to disagree with the Democratic president. If he talks about sending troops abroad, conservatives questioning what vital national interest is at stake will find it easy to get a hearing. It is just as easy to imagine conservatives panning inaction and portraying Biden as dovish and weak.
When former President Barack Obama pursued a disastrous regime-change war in Libya, Sen. Rand Paul (Ky.) was able to rally rank-and-file Republicans against it. When Obama struck a nuclear deal with Iran, the more hawkish Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) had the upper hand.
Republicans are still divided on whether "great nations do not fight endless wars" or whether a conservative foreign policy should seek benevolent global hegemony. It will be litigated during the 2024 primaries. But for now, it will be shaped by a Democratic president's decisions.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
W. James Antle III is the politics editor of the Washington Examiner, the former editor of The American Conservative, and author of Devouring Freedom: Can Big Government Ever Be Stopped?.
-
Why is China stockpiling resources?
The Explainer The superpower has been amassing huge reserves of commodities at great cost despite its economic downturn
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
Paraguay's dangerous dalliance with cryptocurrency
Under The Radar Overheating Paraguayans are pushing back over power outages caused by illegal miners
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The Week contest: Tattoo prediction
Puzzles and Quizzes
By The Week US Published
-
ICJ ruling: will 'damning verdict' stop Netanyahu?
Talking Point The UN's top court has ruled Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories breaks international law
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
How Biden's enablers may have delayed his bowing out
Talking Points Joe Biden's inner circle faces calls for a reckoning for allegedly shielding the president — and the public — from questions of aging and electoral viability
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
The Democrats 'resigned to a second Trump presidency'
Talking Points Did the assassination attempt end Biden's election chances?
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Venezuela election: first vote in a decade offers hope to poverty-stricken nation
The Explainer Nicolás Maduro agreed to 'free and fair' vote but poor polling and threat of prosecution pushes disputed leader to desperate methods
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
How could J.D. Vance impact the special relationship?
Today's Big Question Trump's hawkish pick for VP said UK is the first 'truly Islamist country' with a nuclear weapon
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Are down-ticket Democrats doomed?
Talking Points President Joe Biden's refusal to step back from his reelection campaign has some local Democrats wondering if their own races are in trouble — but not everyone is worried
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Biden, Trump urge calm after assassination attempt
Speed Reads A 20-year-old gunman grazed Trump's ear and fatally shot a rally attendee on Saturday
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The Tamils stranded on 'secretive' British island in Indian Ocean
Under the Radar Migrants 'unlawfully detained' since 2021 shipwreck on UK-controlled Diego Garcia, site of important US military base
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published