Joe Biden on Terrorism, the Iraq War and Homeland Security

Biden has consistently expressed strong support for an assertive, military response to Al Qaeda. He accepts the premise that there is a significant threat of global terrorism against the United States, and advocates responses on that basis.

Biden has also become more vigorously critical of the Bush Administration's attitude toward the war on terror in the last several years. More lately, in 2008, he has been critical of Republican candidate John McCain's attitudes on terrorism, calling them the product of "twisted logic" and suggesting McCain study the subject more closely.

In 2007, speaking in an interview with Thushan Amarasiriwardena, he maintained that he would like to "change radically the president's policy, empty Guantanamo, close it down, bulldoze down Abu Ghraib [detention facility]" because "they produce terrorists, they don't identify terrorists." He concluded that the United States is less secure because of the president's policies.

In 2007, Biden also expressed the view that the center of gravity of the war on terror should be Afghanistan, where he promoted the idea of a surge in troops, and Pakistan. In his view, the country was less secure than it was on September 11, 2001.

These statements are more critical than those he made as a potential presidential candidate in the autumn of 2006. His platform at that time included four steps:

1. Create Homeland Security Trust Fund;
2. Intercept Threats Abroad
3. Restore Partnerships and Build Effective Alliances Instead of Alienating Them
4. Advance Democracy, Bolster Failing States, Win the War of Ideas.

The first two steps in Biden's outline contained practical, concrete suggestions that included hiring more FBI and police agents, and funding ways to prevent and respond to attacks on American soil. He approved the technological solutions that are most favored in government today, such as radiological scanners (for use at ports and airports) and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for the military, as well as funding to create a more robust intelligence and military community.

Biden's other suggestions fell into the diplomatic arena. Like Obama, he also advocated nuclear non-proliferation methods.

One of the areas where Biden has been clearest and best, is in his recognition that there is no one thing called "terrorism" but rather many groups, requiring different kinds of responses:

The Administration continues to conflate under one label – “the war on terrorism” -- very disparate challenges from very different groups and countries and to use the same limited set of tools – military force and regime change – to fight them.

We must refocus America on the most lethal threat: the possibility radical fundamentalists will acquire weapons of mass destruction and develop strategies for success in Iraq and Afghanistan. That will give America more freedom, flexibility and credibility to engage other challenges, including outlaw states that flout the rules, violence in the Middle East, the struggle for the hearts and minds of tens of millions of Muslims, the emergence of China and India, and energy and environmental security.

Although Biden did initially vote to authorize war in Iraq, he has recanted with vigor. In April, 2008, he called the surge in troops a failure. In 2006, Biden called the Iraq war his number one reason for entering the presidential race, and said that the next president must:[/p

…immediately step in and act without hesitation to end our involvement in Iraq without destabilizing the Middle East and the rest of the world. Our safety is literally at stake, our soldiers lives are at stake, our energy supply from the region is now at risk and America's leadership among the world's nations is at stake."

Learn more about Biden's views on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan from About.com Middle East Issues Guide Pierre Tristam, and on his foreign policy from U.S. Foreign Policy Guide Keith Porter.

Biden has been deeply critical of the current state of Homeland Security, and has advocated more funding to: screen cargo coming into the United States, hire more FBI agents and local police, and create local counter-terrorism units in the states.

In the main, Biden's stance is consistent with a relatively conservative view. In keeping with his acceptance that there is a need for strong security, he is in favor of reallocating military resources to serve that need and in favor of more resources for security personnel and industries.

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