According to the L.A. Times:
McCain has said that, as president, he would call for creation of a "league of democracies" that would move aggressively to tackle problems the United Nations fails to resolve, such as the Iranian and North Korean nuclear programs, civil strife in Sudan and world health crises.
So-called "realists" attacked this idea because they think countries like Saudi Arabia, China and Russia may be upset. Though they are not democracies we need them for many issues. They were especially concerned because McCain seemed to imply that this league would be militarily equipped and engaged in warfare outside the purview of the UN.
Now McCain back pedals:
"It does not envision military action," McCain told reporters in Dallas on April 11. He said it would "not be a formal organization; it would be a coalition of nations that shifts sometimes depending on what their priorities are."
I'm all for such a league if it concentrates on promoting democratic actions everywhere, especiallly at the UN. Autocracies often beat democracies in UN votes by working together. Why can't we form a League of Democracies to build a consensus democratic view on a given issue? Then we'd go the UN and vote in unison for the democratic policies we favor.
Of course, this means that America will not always have its own way. But the League of Democracies would often have its way - a lot more satisfying condition than what we have now.
It also means that America will become a true leader in the UN. The League of Democracies will enable democracies to prevail on many important issues, such as peace, terrorism and human rights.
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