ABSTRACT
This chapter investigates US public opinion toward Barack Obama's foreign policy choices and priorities. Historically, US foreign policy has oscillated between isolationism and internationalism. After World War II, the United States emerged as one of the two superpowers in the world, and with the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet empire, it remained as the sole superpower. NATO intervened in the Kosovo war, fought in Afghanistan, and intervened in civil war in Libya. Obama's goal was to concentrate mostly on domestic affairs, for three reasons: first, because he inherited a major economic and financial crisis; second, he wanted to initiate major reforms in areas such as health care; and third, he had no experience in foreign affairs. For more than a decade, Presidents Bush and Obama have been trying to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power. Public opinion rejected the Obama initiatives, and disapproved of his policies and handling of the relations with Israel.
