Know Your Candidates

I believe the upcoming U.S. presidential election will be a pivotal one in Iranian-American relations. Fortunately, current events have required each candidate to articulate a position on Iran. Unfortunately, most candidates express a bellicose attitude toward Iran. Barack Obama seems to be the only candidate expressing an interest in diplomacy, as opposed to inflammatory rhetoric. With U.S. troops on the ground in two of Iran's neighbors, one of which has a Shia majority, the risk of rapid escalation is very real. I fear that candidates who stake out a bellicose position now have not given themselves enough room to maneuver the complex situation as it unfolds.

As always, you can click on the title of this post to see the article which inspired it.