John Bolton: Obama presidency dangerous

John Bolton

JERUSALEM – A Barack Obama presidency would spell danger for the Middle East and for America's interests in the region, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton told WND in an interview.

Bolton expressed concern Obama will not support the use of force to fight terrorism by U.S. allies, such as Israel.

"Obama may cause a real problem with our friends or allies who see the world as a more difficult place, such as those dealing with terrorist acts in Gaza, the West Bank or Hezbollah in Lebanon," said Bolton.

"All these things can be handled by talks, according to Obama. But when it is necessary to resort to force or self defense, Obama would look on in disfavor," Bolton said.

Bolton argued Obama holds a "broad conviction" that "everything can be negotiated and can be solved through negotiations."

"He has a faith in the negotiation process as matter that drives policy and not as one aspect of policy only when negotiations make sense," Bolton told WND.

Asked if he believes an Obama presidency will be dangerous for the U.S. as far as the Middle East is concerned, Bolton replied: "Yes. I think so. Although his views seem to change fairly rapidly, if you look at what he says unprompted in response to questions, and not just when he is reading speeches, he has a very naive view of how one deals with adversaries around the world."

Obama has drawn much criticism on some of his stated policies regarding the war on terror, such as advocating an immediate withdrawal from Iraq and sit-downs with the leaders of terrorist-supporting states such as Iran.

Sen. John McCain, the GOP presumptive presidential nominee, claims Obama approaches the war on terror from a crime-fighting perspective after Obama last month said al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden should be given access to U.S. courts if he is captured.

"There seems to be more concern about the rights of terrorists or alleged terrorists than the rights that the American people have to safety and security," said former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, speaking to reporters last month on behalf of the McCain campaign.

Emphasizing the terrorism issue, McCain has numerous times quoted a WND exclusive interview in which Ahmed Yousuf, Hamas' chief political adviser in the Gaza Strip, said he "hopes" Obama becomes president. Yousuf also compared Obama to John F. Kennedy.

But Obama, who has condemned Hamas, bit back, stating the "Bush-McCain" approach to the war on terrorism "has left al-Qaida's leaders as large."

"I refuse to be lectured on national security by people who are responsible for the most disastrous set of foreign policy decisions in the recent history of the United States,'' Obama told recently reporters.

Obama said that as a result of the "misguided'' policies in Iraq, the military is overstretched and Afghanistan is "sliding towards chaos."

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