Yet from the outset of his presidency, Bush has also displayed his willingness to challenge, and even ignore, world opinion when he believes it conflicts with U.S. interests.
Before the confrontation with Iraq, the administration ruffled feathers in Europe and Asia by renouncing a series of international treaties -- such as the Kyoto agreement on global warming and the 1972 treaty barring the development of missile defense systems.
And for months Bush has made clear that even if the U.N. rejects military action against Iraq, the United States will try to depose Iraqi President Saddam Hussein with a coalition of willing nations. "The course of this nation," Bush insisted in his State of the Union address this year, "does not depend on the decisions of others."
In chorus, the top Democratic contenders say such bristling rhetoric -- and the repudiation of so many international agreements -- amounts to what Kerry calls a "belligerent unilateralism" that is making it more difficult to win global cooperation on Iraq, the new nuclear threat posed by North Korea and the challenges of terrorism and weapons proliferation.
The Democrats insist that the best way to improve U.S. security is to work with others in ways that maximize international support for U.S. goals and minimize resentment of its preponderant power.
Edwards succinctly summarizes that argument, telling his audiences: "I say to every American family: Your family is safer in a world where America is looked up to and respected, not in a world where America is hated."
This call for cooperation goes only so far: Kerry, Lieberman, Gephardt and Edwards have all indicated that they would support Bush if he decides to invade Iraq without a second U.N. resolution. Only Dean among the top-tier candidates has said he would oppose such a move.
Some Bush advisors believe support for force without U.N. approval undermines the Democratic argument by showing a willingness to act unilaterally on the largest decision the United States faces. "Intellectually speaking, their arguments are hollow," said a senior White House aide.
But this conflict appears certain to steadily resurface in a variety of arenas. For instance, Lieberman has called on Bush to quickly establish international control over a postwar Iraq, while the administration has been weighing that approach against more direct American control.
And while Bush has suggested that toppling Hussein might inspire democratic reforms across the Mideast, Lieberman, Kerry and Edwards argue that change will require new initiatives with allies to expand trade, improve living standards and bolster civil society in the Arab world.
