What Should the U.S. Role Be in the Middle East?

Our interests in the Middle East go back to the earliest days of our republic. There are three essentials that are non-negotiable parts of our foreign policy: sea power, security of Israel, and promotion of democratic values. Given these non-negotiables, a collision of values with Islamist forces is inevitable. This is a summary of part of a presentation I gave this week in a four-part lecture series.