The next president assuredly faces many daunting challenges in the next four years, only a handful of which were addressed by Holbrooke in his article, which, by the way, was extremely biased in my not-at-all-expert opinion. However, many of the issues he addressed will be a major focus and should be carefully considered.
Iraq is a huge issue, and one of the biggest administrative disasters of the Bush era. A withdrawal is necessary, but should not occur all at once. Now that we have been asked to leave, and Iraq feels it can handle itself, I feel that we should bow out. It is no longer our battle (if it ever was) and our time there should now come to an end.
Green energy is also a large focus, and neither of the candidates are as strong as I would like to see. Emily made a great point in her blog concerning Al Gore. We most assuredly would not be in the position we are today if he had been elected. The United States would be a greener country and the better for it. I'm not saying I would have voted for Gore solely on his environmental platform, I was far too young to vote anyway, but he had a good vision for this countries environmental progress and the next president should definitely take that into account.
Our presence in Afghanistan should also be addressed. Americans are still angry about September 11, even if they are not as vocal about it as before. Continued presence in Afghanistan would not raise the kind of outcry that the same in Iraq would create. Furthermore, relations between the U.S. and the Middle East must be carefully analyzed. Yes, Muslim extremists exist, but the U.S. has allowed a view of the Muslim world to remain in our country that is deeply biased and a negative representation of what the majority of Muslim people are about. Yes, jihadists and Muslim extremists exist. No they do not accurately represent the whole of the Muslim world.
Finally, we must consider the lack of U.S. assistance in Africa. It seems to me that the United States is willing to fight the battles of some nations in the name of Democracy, but unwilling to stop slaughters in others (Rwanda, Sudan, Darfur). And while I am not calling for U.S. involvement, it does seem necessary to me that the U.S. establish a foreign policy and stick with it, not just fight the battles that will benefit them the most in the long run.
The next president faces many obstacles and many decisions. It is a job that I would never want to have, and a responsibility that I could never handle. I only hope that the candidate that wins the election is fully prepared for the situation they will enter and has a good head on their shoulders.