April 22, 1999

Kosovo crisis receives heated attention from candidates

By BJ White
CyberCaucus 2000 News Service
Drake University

In the race for the presidency of 2000, everything a presidential hopeful says or doesn't say is placed under the microscope of the American people. An issue currently receiving heated attention is the crisis in Kosovo. The candidates are being heavily probed as to whether or not they support the American involvement with NATO forces in the Kosovo region.

The highly congested GOP field is receiving the bulk of the attention on the Kosovo matter in an attempt to gauge the leadership strength of each candidate. There is not one candidate here who fully supports the Clinton administration's policy in Kosovo. About half of the GOP candidates are against any American involvement in Kosovo. The other half supports having U.S. forces intervene in Kosovo but are critical of President Clinton's leadership in this operation.

Not only do the GOP hopefuls differ in their views over Kosovo, but in the intensity of those views. Sen. John McCain of Arizona is the most visible GOP candidate speaking out on Kosovo. He has granted several interviews concentrating on the Kosovo situation, supporting Clinton's policy yet questioning his leadership. According to the Washington Post on April 7, McCain was originally in favor of air strikes on Yugoslavia and never ruled out the use of U.S. ground troops if it meant ending the war.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Pat Buchanan has been vehemently against American involvement in the Balkans since square one. In a Larry King interview on March 27, Buchanan said, "If the Europeans want to intervene, that's their business. But, if I were president, I would remove every U.S. soldier from the Balkan peninsula." On his official campaign web site, Buchanan has been clear that U.S. intervention should be limited to helping the innocent victims of the war and letting the people of the Balkans settle their differences on their own soil.

Gov. George W. Bush of Texas, considered to be the heavy favorite for the GOP nomination, has been quiet on the Kosovo crisis. In the Austin American-Statesman on March 26, Bush said, "As governor of Texas, I do not have access to all the information and military intelligence available to the commander-in-chief." As of April 22, Bush had no statement on the Kosovo situation on his official web site.

Malcolm S. "Steve" Forbes is one of many candidates who think Clinton and the U.S. forces are doing the right thing but not doing it right. Forbes supports U.S. intervention in Kosovo but has been highly critical of the Clinton-Al Gore policy towards the region. In a press release issued April 13, Forbes said, "We should not send U.S. ground troops into that bloody quagmire. Instead, we must intensify the air war, cut off the supply lines to Serbian forces in Kosovo, and begin arming and training the Kosovars to run the murderous Slobodan Milosevic out of their homeland."

Like Forbes, former Vice President Dan Quayle is also heavily opposed to the actions the United States is taking in Kosovo. Quayle has centered much of his chagrin on President Clinton. In the Austin American-Statesman on March 26, Quayle said, "Every time we have had a deadline set, it has been postponed, and now Milosevic feels that he has a strong position, that he sees a weakened American president." Quayle is wary of the direction Clinton is headed in this conflict. In a press release on April 7, Quayle said, "The situation in Kosovo is the result of a series of blunders, and President Clinton has left us with no good options."

Elizabeth Dole has shown strong support for the U.S. presence in Kosovo. On April 16-17, Dole took a proactive step and made a trip to the Balkans. In a press release on April 15, Dole said, "I am going to Macedonia and Albania because I am very concerned about the humanitarian crisis and the military situation in the region." Dole is encouraging others to support the United States in its military efforts in Kosovo. "We must remain resolute to further the cause of peace and to protect against an aggressor whose designs are regionwide," Dole said in a press release April 2. "We are the greatest nation on the face of the earth and we must not back down."

Signs show that the conflict in Kosovo is far from over, keeping the issue in the forefront on the presidential campaign trail. While there are many views on the situation, these views change quickly as new developments arise. The American people are getting the opportunity through the Kosovo crisis to examine the foreign policy objectives of the presidential candidates, which could make or break any hopeful's chances of gaining a party nomination.