Was he disturbed by the isolationist tinge to many of the questions? He said, “I don’t think there is isolationism in the hinterlands. But Obama hasn’t articulated a case for his policies. No wonder people don’t know why we are in these places.” The candidates he said, we’re asked “bumper sticker” questions (How fast do we get out of Afghanistan?). What we need he says is a serious conversation about what our national interests are and how we should act in the world.

Unfortunately, not only is that discussion missing in the GOP primary debate, it’s absent in the White House. For example, on China, Bolton says the administration suffers from two things. First, “Obama’s basic mind-set is that the U.S. has been in an unfairly dominate position.” So, we need to be forthcoming with the Communist regime. Moreover, Bolton argues, “We have no policies. Saying we have benign neglect would be too praiseworthy.” He contends that Obama “just doesn’t pay that much attention to foreign policy,” noting, for example, the acute problem of cyber-terrorism that has gone unaddressed.