Oversight
Why Do Democrats Refuse to Adopt a Progressive Foreign Policy?
Bernie Sanders’ willingness to criticize America’s military operations makes him an outlier among 2020 Democrats
Bernie Sanders’ has repeatedly touted how his “radical” positions in 2016 — Medicare for all, a $15 minimum wage, debt-free college — have caught on with the public and become increasingly mainstream Democratic positions for the 2020 election.
But on foreign policy, as Sanders has tried to carve out a new way forward, it’s been an entirely different story. Throughout the Democratic primary, reform of U.S. foreign and national security policies has been an afterthought for many of the candidates, or outright ignored by others. And worse, some of them have repeatedly sided with Trump or the country’s massive military and intelligence apparatus.
Naturally, domestic issues are at the forefront of many Americans’ minds, especially those who are constantly in danger of losing their health care, or have seen their wages stall over the past two decades. But foreign policy can be key to addressing those issues too.
The post-9/11 security apparatus has hamstrung spending on domestic policy, driven up the deficit, and led politicians to claim…
