George W. Bush: “Who Cares What Happens Overseas?” Is An Isolationist Attitude That Ignores “The Lesson Of 9/11”
Former President George W. Bush warns against an isolationist attitude while arguing that military intervention isn’t always the answer. From a discussion with former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Wednesday at the George W. Bush Presidential Center:
FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE CONDOLEEZZA RICE: Do you think that we are falling away from that understanding that part of the challenge that we faced on September 11th still is with us and that there are free and unfree? Are we falling away from that? FORMER PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH: Yeah, absolutely, it seems to me. Our nation occasionally goes through isolationist periods where the attitude is we’ve got too many problems at home, therefore, who cares what happens overseas? Which really means to me they just don’t pay attention to the lesson of 9/11. Because what happens overseas matter to our national security at home. And yes, I’m afraid so. And to the extent that people are struggling against tyranny, it makes sense. We don’t have to send troops. We ought to at least stand with them and stand beside them. Because this is what we went through 250 years ago. And again, it’s a belief that everybody wants to be free. And we saw that in Afghanistan. People said, well, they don’t want to be free. They don’t know the difference. Of course they know the difference. Young girls going to school for the first time in their lives knew the difference. Women becoming doctors and professors know the difference between a free society and a tyrannical society. Sadly, those women who began to realize their full potential no longer have a chance to realize their full potential.
