Biden’s foreign policy team exposes a view of national security that differs markedly from Trump’s

WASHINGTON – “Diplomacy is back” and America will be “a host country”.

These are just two of the policy changes that members of President-elect Joe Biden’s national security team pledged to adopt on Tuesday at an event showcasing Biden’s choices for key Cabinet positions.

Biden said his nominees “will restore America to the world, its global leadership and moral leadership, and ensure that our members, diplomats and intelligence professionals can do their jobs without politics.”

Joining Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on stage in Wilmington, Delaware, were Antony Blinken, Biden’s choice for Secretary of State; Alejandro Mayorkas, his choice to head the Department of Homeland Security; Avril Haines, his candidate for the post of director of national intelligence; Jake Sullivan, the new national security adviser; Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who has been appointed Ambassador to the United Nations, and former Secretary of State John Kerry, who will assume a new role of Special Envoy for Climate Change.

The event offered millions of Americans their first opportunity to hear directly from Biden’s candidates, who have decades of foreign policy experience but aren’t necessarily household names.

Taken together, their remarks provided a glimpse of an approach to foreign policy that seems diametrically opposed to that which President Donald Trump has taken for the past four years.

The there was no talk of “America first” and no trace of repression against immigration or refugees. No corporate CEOs or career military officers have been appointed to high positions and no suggestion that US foreign policy should serve economic interests through trade deals and bilateral purchasing agreements.

Instead, the nominees spoke about the importance of restoring American moral leadership, defending human rights, and strengthening multilateral relationships with allies and democracies around the world.

While few Republicans doubted the raw qualifications of Biden’s nominees, GOP senators were already complaining on Tuesday about the new approach. Biden will likely need the votes of at least a few Republicans to confirm his nominees for their posts.

“Biden’s cabinet picks have gone to Ivy League schools, have strong resumes, attend all the right conferences and will be the polite and orderly guardians of America’s decline,” Senator Marco Rubio tweeted Tuesday , by R-Fla. “I support American greatness and have no interest in returning to the ‘normal’ that has left us dependent on China.”

Yet judging by Biden’s past statements about China, his new administration is on the verge of taking a tougher line with America’s main economic adversary than President Barack Obama.

Here are some highlights of the nominees:

Blinken: “We must proceed with equal measures of humility and confidence. Humility because, as the President-elect said, we cannot solve all the world’s problems alone. We must work with it. other countries, we need their cooperation and we need their partnership.But also trust, because America at its best still has a greater capacity than any other country on Earth to bring others together to meet challenges in our time.

Mayorkas: “The Department of Homeland Security has a noble mission to help us ensure our security and to advance our proud history as a host country … My father and mother brought me to this country to escape communism. They cherished our democracy and were extremely proud to become citizens of the United States, just like me. ”

Thomas-Greenfield: “My fellow career diplomats and government officials around the world, I want to tell you: America is back. Multilateralism is back. Diplomacy is back.”

Haines: “Mr. President-elect, you know I have never hesitated to speak the truth to power, and it will be my responsibility as Director of National Intelligence … you would never want me to do otherwise, and you appreciate the perspective of the intelligence community, [and] will do this even though what I have to say may be embarrassing or difficult. And I assure you that there will be those times. “

Sullivan: Mr. President-elect, “You have also charged us with putting people at the center of our foreign policy. You have told us about the alliances that we are rebuilding, the institutions that we lead, the agreements that we sign, all must be judged. with a fundamental question – will it make life better, easier and safer for families across the country? “

Kerry: “The road ahead is exciting. It means creating millions of jobs for the middle class, it means less pollution in our air and oceans, it means making life healthier for citizens around the world, and This Means We Will Strengthen Security For Facing the climate crisis, President-elect Joe Biden is determined to seize the future now and leave a healing planet for future generations. “