Most successful post-Cold War foreign policy?

[CathKhan]

Of the four Presidents we've had since the fall of the Berlin Wall (1989) and the collapse of the Soviet Union (1991), which President has had the most successful  foreign policy? The options we're given are
-George H.W. Bush (1989-1993)
-William Jefferson Clinton (1993-2001)
-George W. Bush (2001-2009)
-Barack Obama (2009-?)

Please state your opinions and give the reasons why.

[Vosem]

The latter Bush actually overthrew the Taliban and Hussein, so probably him. None of them were bad.

[Old Europe]

Bill Clinton.

Dayton Accords, Good Friday Agreement, and a couple of other treaties come to mind. His efforts to solve the Middle East problem were in large parts in vain, but at least it resulted in a lasting peace between Israel and Jordan.

The latter Bush actually overthrew the Taliban and Hussein, so probably him. None of them were bad.

"Overthrown" is at best an exaggaration. Temporarily weakened maybe.

[dead0man]

Probably Clinton, but even he had his faults.  Trying to feed Somalia, and then abandoning them when some bastards shot at us wasn't exactly a triumph.

[Big Wiggly Style]

Jesus Christ none of the above.

[crypto-fascist superhero]

Bush I by default,* but yuck.

*Least inclined to grovel for the Israelis.

[white trash heroes]

Bush I by default,* but yuck.

*Least inclined to grovel for the Israelis.

[Redalgo]

George H.W. Bush - mostly since Bill Clinton did not get us involved in Rwanda and both the latter Bush, and now Obama, have pursued the War on Terror in a manner I find unsettling.

[Cory]

I would say either Bush Senior of Bill Clinton.

[Senator Snowstalker]

Bush Sr. by default, with Obama in second. Clinton should have gone into Rwanda and should not have gone into Yugoslavia, and Bush II was the biggest supporter of war profiteering ever.

[WillK]

Probably Clinton, but even he had his faults.  Trying to feed Somalia, and then abandoning them when some bastards shot at us wasn't exactly a triumph.

It was Bush Sr who sent US troops into Somalia; Clinton inherited the situation.   

[Rooney]

Since post-Cold War American foreign policy has pretty much been the U.S. sends troops to prop up/remove a dictator or intervening in some cause that is selectively called "ethnic cleansing" by the foreign policy elite is it not debatable that President G.W. Bush was the most successful? After all he took that to the logical extreme. 

[Senator Kalwejt]

Clinton's foreign policy was extremely incoherent. He had periods of interventionism, semi-isolationism and multilateralism.

[Communists For McCain]

Clinton's foreign policy was extremely incoherent. He had periods of interventionism, semi-isolationism and multilateralism.

Bill Clinton's foreign policy was whatever the Gallup Gods dictated.

[WillK]

Since post-Cold War American foreign policy has pretty much been the U.S. sends troops to prop up/remove a dictator or intervening in some cause that is selectively called "ethnic cleansing" by the foreign policy elite is it not debatable that President G.W. Bush was the most successful? After all he took that to the logical extreme. 

But were his wars as successful as his fathers wars?
 
Seems to me that Panama and Gulf War1  were more successful than Afghanistan and GulfWar2

[Cobbler]

GHW Bush, Obama, Clinton and then Dubya.

[Purch]

Are we talking about the same Bill Clinton who bombed the crap out of Iraq throughout his whole impeachment vote? Not to mention the missiles he dropped on on Afghanistan. And to answer the Op they were all just horrible.

[dead0man]

Probably Clinton, but even he had his faults.  Trying to feed Somalia, and then abandoning them when some bastards shot at us wasn't exactly a triumph.

It was Bush Sr who sent US troops into Somalia; Clinton inherited the situation.   

Well, it was the UN (voting unanimously) who sent the troops and food in, but yes, it was Bush the First who really pushed the issue.  It was Clinton that told the men on the ground that they couldn't use armor or proper air support.  It was Clinton that pussed out when that decision lead to the deaths of a many hundreds of Somalians and 18 Americans.

(of course those numbers pale when compared to the hundreds of thousands who starved to death or died in the ensuing civil war...not to mention the hundreds of thousands that have died since....obviously it's not all Clinton's fault, the asshats from there trying to enforce their idiotic rules on the locals deserve the lion's share of the blame)

[white trash heroes]

Are we talking about the same Bill Clinton who bombed the crap out of Iraq throughout his whole impeachment vote? Not to mention the missiles he dropped on on Afghanistan. And to answer the Op they were all just horrible.

Sanctions on Iraq murdered many more than his bombs did. But it's okay, it was to spread "freedom and democracy" so that means it was totally worth it.

[Purch]

Are we talking about the same Bill Clinton who bombed the crap out of Iraq throughout his whole impeachment vote? Not to mention the missiles he dropped on on Afghanistan. And to answer the Op they were all just horrible.

Sanctions on Iraq murdered many more than his bombs did. But it's okay, it was to spread "freedom and democracy" so that means it was totally worth it.

Exactly, I'm not saying Cliton was the worst, I'm saying picking any of these President's is impossible because it's not one foreign policy that made our relationship with the middle east so bad(It takes a bipartisan effort to screw things up this badly over a span of about 3 decades).. It's a combination of these administrations and their constant interference in  middle eastern affairs.

[Emperor SJoyce]

Jesus Christ none of the above.

This, and, are those my only choices?

[Cory]

This, and, are those my only choices?

Yes. Those are the only post-Cold War Presidents we've had thus far.

[shua]

Are we talking about the same Bill Clinton who bombed the crap out of Iraq throughout his whole impeachment vote? Not to mention the missiles he dropped on on Afghanistan. And to answer the Op they were all just horrible.

Sanctions on Iraq murdered many more than his bombs did. But it's okay, it was to spread "freedom and democracy" so that means it was totally worth it.

I don't remember the democracy argument being made for Iraq sanctions in the 90s. It was always about stopping Saddam from reconstituting military power.

[I Can't Get That Sound You Make, Out Of My Head]

None of them really. Obama was the least repulsive of the three, IMO (Bush Snr. doesn't really count as he was voted out of office after a year)

[TNF]

Clinton's foreign policy was extremely incoherent. He had periods of interventionism, semi-isolationism and multilateralism.

Bill Clinton's foreign policy was whatever the Gallup Gods dictated.

Much like everything else about Clinton's presidency, of course.

I think Bush I had the best, followed by Obama, then Clinton, and then Bush II.