On October 8, the Steamboat Institute brought two foreign policy experts to campus to debate the proposition, “Is American global dominance the best defense against tyranny and evil?” Arguing in favor was Mary Kissel. Ms. Kissel is the Executive VP and Senior Policy Advisor at Stephens, Inc. and the former Advisor to Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo. Arguing against was Justin Logan, the Director of Defense and Foreign Policy Studies at the Cato Institute.
President Kotlikoff introduced the debate, and it was moderated by Sarah Bedford, political and investigative reporter at the Washington Examiner.
This was the third time that the Steamboat Institute hosted a debate on the Cornell campus, and Steamboat is hosting a total of six debates this semester at various universities.
Kissel argued that American isolationism is harmful for global democracy. She argued that America “do[es] the greatest good” and is “the antidote to tyranny and evil.” She also posited that “isolationism and indifference is not an option in the real world.” America engages with the world altruistically, without seeking to build an empire. When America steps back from leadership, tyranny fills the void.
Logan argued that though the debate resolution was framed in terms of “global dominance,” America is not pursuing that. “Global dominance is pursuing empire, not republics,” Logan stated.
Logan wants foreign policy to focus on protecting American interests without the emphasis on eliminating “tyranny and evil.” For him, the U.S. should not be pursuing global dominance; rather, it should deny any other country dominance in its own region. Logan would rather focus on containing China than being all things to all peoples.
The audience was polled before and after the debate. Prior to the debate, the audience poll showed 48% agreeing and 37% disagreeing with the debate proposition. 14% were undecided. The audience poll immediately after the debate showed 44% in agreement, 50% in disagreement, and only 4% undecided.
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Students had the opportunity to eat pizza with the panelists following the 90-minute debate in the WSH Memorial Room.
A primary sponsor of the debate was Bruce D. Benson ‘64, a Cornellian who later served as President of the University of Colorado System. Local co-sponsors included the Heterodox Academy, Cornellians United for Free Speech, the Cornell Republicans, and the Cornell Political Union.
