May 1, 2014--The Obama (Small Ball) Doctrine

Stung by mounting criticism of his foreign policy--especially snipping on the Sunday talk show circuit by John McCain and other Republicans--finally, at a press conference in Manila, Obama snapped.

The New York Times described him as "visibly frustrated."

In addition to the collapse of the U.S.-sponsored Middle East peace talks, Russian maneuvers in Ukraine, Syria still festering, Egypt about to execute 682 members of the Muslim Brotherhood, Iraq close to unravelling, and with who knows what will happen next in Afghanistan, Obama's recent Asia trip ran up against resistance (in Japan about new trade policies), skepticism in the Philippines, and downright rejection in Korea. Only Malaysia seemed inclined to want to rebuild relations with the United States.

And, of course, China, feeling ignored (Obama, to make a geopolitical point, opted not to visit), emphasized its own version of the the new Russian imperialism, declaring that China, or Greater China includes a host of islands in the East China Sea claimed either by Japan or Taiwan.

To rub it in, North Korea could be added to the list--they appear to be ready to explode another nuclear device and have plans to ramp up their capacity to produce more as well as miniaturize them so they can be fitted to their long-range missiles, missiles that soon may have the capacity to reach the U.S. west coast.

Partisanship aside, the case can be made that Obama's foreign policy--seemingly full of potential when he took office--has indeed, with a few exceptions, been disappointing. And I'm being kind.

But at his Manila new conference, Obama made the case--not-so-fast. Though McCain for more than a decade has advocated we "bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb Iran" and more recently arm the Syrians and Ukrainians, there are direct talks underway with the Iranians that with some luck (all right, considerable luck and the continuing collapse of the Iranian economy) could lead to their agreeing to give up their dream to become a nuclear nation. And then I suppose there is Tunisia and Libya to point to as other half-successes.

The new Obama Doctrine, presented off-the-cuff in the Philippines, does merit careful consideration and may in fact be guided by practical wisdom derived from decades of frustrating experience.

A few quotes from President Obama--

Why is it that everybody is so eager to use military force after we've just gone through a decade of war at enormous cost to our troops and our budget. And what is it exactly that these critics think would have been accomplished?

The implication . . . is that each and every time a country violates [red lines that we might be tempted to draw] the United States should go to war, or stand prepared to engage militarily, and if it doesn't then somehow we're not serious about these norms. Well, that's not the case. 

Do people actually think that somehow sending some additional arms into Ukraine could potentially deter the Russian army? Or are we more likely to deter them by applying the sort of international pressure and economic pressure we're applying?

[Proceeding this way] may not be sexy and it doesn't make good argument on Sunday morning shows--but it avoids errors.

Continuing the baseball analogy, he said--

You hit singles, you hit doubles; every once in a while we may be able to hit a home run. But we steadily advance the interests of the American people and our partnership with folks around the world.

This small-ball approach to the way Obama has concluded we need to play in a world full of challenges and threats, considering the realities and the limits to our human and economic resources, may not satisfy our macho instincts, but it makes sense.

It doesn't work for or appeal to the McCains of the world who want America to carry and use its big stick in every situation where they see our interests or values threatened. The lessons from Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan, though, should teach them and us otherwise.