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Unclear If Palin Subscribes to Bush Doctrine

September 11, 2008 8:27 PM

ABC News' Teddy Davis and Rigel Anderson report: Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin supports using U.S. military force when a strike is "imminent" against the American people, but in an interview with ABC News, she stopped short of saying whether she supports "anticipatory self-defense," leaving open the question of whether she subscribes to the Bush Doctrine.

"Charlie, if there is legitimate and enough intelligence that tells us that a strike is imminent against American people, we have every right to defend our country," Palin told ABC News' Charles Gibson. "In fact, the president has the obligation, the duty to defend, and that's what a McCain-Palin administration would do."

President Bush's September 2002 "National Security Strategy of the United States" declares that the U.S. "must adapt the concept of imminent threat to the capabilities and objectives of today's adversaries."

The security strategy reads: "The greater the threat, the greater is the risk of inaction -- and the more compelling the case for taking anticipatory action to defend ourselves, even if uncertainty remains as to the time and place of the enemy’s attack."

Asked if Palin's bar for the use of force is higher than the one contained in the Bush Doctrine, the McCain-Palin campaign said that it was a highly conceptual question that Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., himself may have never answered, and that it was going to let Palin's interview with Gibson stand on its own.

The McCain campaign also explained Palin's unclear stance on the Bush Doctrine by telling ABCNews.com that Gibson's question was asked in the abstract and not in the context of an Iraq war, which the Republican presidential nominee has consistently supported.

McCain not only voted to authorize the use of force in Iraq, but reaffirmed in an interview earlier this year that he thinks the U.S. invasion of Iraq was not a mistake.

"The war, 'the invasion,' was not a mistake. The handling of the war was a terrible mistake," McCain told the late Tim Russert of NBC News in January.

Palin discussed her views, on the Bush Doctrine and the use of force, with Gibson during her first televised interview since being named as McCain's running mate.

The discussion of "anticipatory self-defense" began with Gibson asking, "Do you agree with the Bush Doctrine?"

"In what respect, Charlie?" asked Palin.

Gibson explained that he was asking if she agrees with Bush that the United States has "the right to a pre-emptive strike against any other country that we think is going to attack us."

The Alaska governor did not directly answer the question.

"I agree that a president's job, when they swear-in their oath to uphold our Constitution, their top priority is to defend the United States of America," said Palin. "I know that John McCain will do that and I, as his vice president ... we are blessed with that vote of the American people and are elected to serve and are sworn-in on Jan. 20, that will be our top priority ... to defend the American people."

Gibson reposed the question, asking, "Do we have a right to anticipatory self-defense?  Do we have a right to make a pre-emptive strike against another country if we feel that country might strike us?"

Palin once again avoided directly answering the question.

Instead of answering whether she agreed with Bush on whether the U.S. has a right to "anticipatory self-defense," she simply stated her support for the traditional concept of using military force to combat an "imminent threat."

While calling for the U.S. to revise its policy on the use of force, the September 2002 National Security Strategy of the United States describes an imminent threat as "most often a visible mobilization of armies, navies, and air forces preparing to attack."

In her interview with ABC News, Palin was initially unsure of what Gibson was referring to when he asked about the Bush Doctrine. The McCain campaign says that this is because the Bush Doctrine has been used to refer to multiple concepts beyond anticipatory self-defense, including "are you with us or are you against us," and the concept that the United States will hold a nation-state that harbors terrorists, responsible.  Before Gibson explained that he was referring to anticipatory self-defense, Palin suggested that she thought it referred to the president's commitment to ridding the world of Islamic extremism.

September 11, 2008 in Political Radar | Permalink | Share | User Comments (820)

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This article doesn't fully explain the situation. Palin had no idea what the Bush Doctrine is.

Gibson's asking her if she agrees does not demand nuance. She had a "moose in the headlights look." He literally had to define the doctrine for her.

It takes more than snark and staring across the ocean to Russia to actually be qualified to lead the country.

Posted by: burto | Sep 11, 2008 8:44:12 PM

you missed the bigger point..she DIDNT KNOW what the bush doctrine is...she had no idea until he explained it...wake up america..

Posted by: etw | Sep 11, 2008 8:45:15 PM

she's not 'unclear', she has no idea what the 'bush doctrine' even is! This is extremely scary.
Please wake up America before it's too late!

Posted by: lisa | Sep 11, 2008 8:47:44 PM

YOU GOTTA LOVE PALIN IN ALL HER QUARKY IGNORANCE. WE ALL SEE WHY THE GOP TRIED TO KEEP THEIR OWN GOODY TWO-MOOSE IN A SHELTERED CRANNIE, TO AVOID EXPOSURE FROM THOSE "LIBERAL ELITIST MEDIA FOLK" WHO ARE TOO LIBERAL TO KNOW ANYTHING THATS HAPPENING IN THE "REAL WORLD"

HAHA... YOU GOTTA LOVE THIS RIGHT WING CHICK! OBAMA 08'

Posted by: TIMEIS NOW24 | Sep 11, 2008 8:49:09 PM

I don't disagree that Palin did not understand the term. But who actually does? Look it up in Wikipedia. The term "Bush Doctrine" is a broad term that has had several meanings in the past 8 years. It is reasonable that it would take a few seconds for Gibson to clarify exactly what it was that he was asking.

David Gergen on CNN even said that most journalists wouldn't know what the term meant.

Posted by: Katharine | Sep 11, 2008 8:49:48 PM

Oooooh, chortle, chortle. This was it...the "potatoe" moment. The are you smarter than a fifth grader moment. The moose caught in the headlights moment. But there were others. I predict she'll be off the ticket before another week passes.

Posted by: Dema | Sep 11, 2008 8:51:09 PM

The sad part is that she's smart and she was bad! not good for a pitbull...
Sad day in this country, when the folks running for office don't know the polocies out there, and then to say we would go to war with Russia, the republicans sure love war, what happened to diplomacy fisrt?...

Posted by: Mark | Sep 11, 2008 8:53:11 PM

PALIN ISNT EVEN THE REAL MISS ALASKA...
A WOMAN WHO SUPPORTS OBAMA IS... BUT I GUESS PALIN LIKES STEALING TITLES.... MISS ALASKA----AGENT OF CHANGE.... WELL YOU GET THE IDEA.

OBAMA 08'

Posted by: BUSHSCRACKDEALER | Sep 11, 2008 8:53:38 PM

There is no singular "Bush Doctrine", as in the Monroe Doctrine. If you believe that there is an agreed upon definition of the "Bush Doctrine", you're not as intelligent as you think.

Posted by: Joe | Sep 11, 2008 8:54:52 PM

it is funny that left tried like her to bush third term and yet she does not know bush doctrine.

Posted by: xiao | Sep 11, 2008 8:55:28 PM

Seriously now... How many of you liberals knew that you disagreed with the "Bush Doctrine" before this interview???

Posted by: seriously | Sep 11, 2008 8:55:33 PM

"Do you agree with the Bush doctrine?" is a very sarcastic questions

Posted by: Tim | Sep 11, 2008 8:55:40 PM

At least she did not say, that's not what I meant.

Posted by: catleya | Sep 11, 2008 8:56:05 PM

coke man, sorry, didn't know you were a teacher!

Posted by: Mark | Sep 11, 2008 8:56:31 PM

It makes sense because she is not the 3rd Bush, right?

Posted by: catleya | Sep 11, 2008 8:57:54 PM

Women are crossing over to Palin, but they are just getting warmed up.

Osama bin Biden is toast.

Posted by: Hostile Knowledge | Sep 11, 2008 8:58:19 PM

I DIDNT KNOW BUSH AND OBAMA HAD THE SAME DEALER???? HMMM (CHUCKLE CHUCKLE)

PALIN JUNKIES ARE THE BEST... YOU GUYS ARE THE TYPE OF PEOPLE I LIKE TO PATRONIZE ABOUT POLITICS AT WORK.... ITS FUNNY HOW ANGRY AND DETACHED YOU BECOME WHEN YOU HEAR THE FACTS ABOUT YOUR TICKET.

OBAMA 08'

Posted by: TIMEIS NOW24 | Sep 11, 2008 8:58:21 PM

If a man(Terrorist)walked into your home (Country) and murdered your family and then is witnessed walking into your neighbors house, should the police (military) have the right to go into the house and get him? Should they be allowed to use force? Should my neighbor be allowed to protect him? I think you need to look no further than the laws that apply to every american citizen to to find your answers.

Posted by: Tony Ball | Sep 11, 2008 8:58:29 PM

Bitter, nervous, angry and defensive. Good pick, John.

Posted by: Namsled | Sep 11, 2008 8:59:40 PM

I thought Palin was being coached by Bush's advisers, like Steve Biegun, who served as a former staff member of Bush's National Security Council.

Shouldn't they have explained this to her? But maybe they assumed that as a Republican she already knew?

Or maybe they just told her, when in doubt, repeat over and over, "radical Islamic extremists".

Posted by: cincyr | Sep 11, 2008 8:59:57 PM

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