Webb also talked about the toll of the Iraq War, citing a 2002 op-ed he wrote warning that invading the country would be a 'strategic blunder.' Webb critiques Clinton-era foreign policy He doesn’t attack Bill or Hillary by name, but analyzes some of their policies.

Jim Webb laid out an implicit critique of two decades of Clinton foreign policy in Chicago on Wednesday night, saying the country has lacked strategic direction since Bill Clinton assumed the presidency.

He also took aim at the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the 2011 NATO intervention in Libya.


The former Democratic senator from Virginia continued to shy away from criticizing Hillary Clinton directly, as he has in recent months, but his critique amounted to one of the strongest contrasts he’s drawn between himself and Clinton to date.

“We really have not had a clear strategic doctrine since the end of the Cold War. I would say particularly since about 1993,” said Webb at an event at David Axelrod’s Institute of Politics at the University of Chicago. Left unsaid was the name of the president who took office that year: Bill Clinton.

Webb went on to talk about the toll of the Iraq War, citing an op-ed he wrote in 2002 warning that invading the country would be a “strategic blunder” — without referring to then-Sen. Hillary Clinton’s vote to authorize the invasion. President Barack Obama’s opposition to that war became a decisive distinction in his 2008 primary victory over Clinton.

Webb then said the administration’s response to the Arab Spring had set back the United States’ standing in the Middle East, singling out the U.S.-led intervention in Libya in particular. “Sure, [Muammar] Qadhafi was a bad guy, we understand that, but we had no treaties in place, we had no Americans at risk, we were not under any threat of attack,” he said.

Webb did not mention that Hillary Clinton, in her latest memoir, takes credit for shaping the U.S. decision to intervene in Libya as secretary of state. But Axelrod did, asking Webb after his remarks whether Libya would become an issue in a primary contest between the two. “Certainly it is a major policy distinction between what I was saying and what the administration was doing,” said Webb, who recounted his failed efforts to bring military action in Libya up for debate on the Senate floor.

Pressed again by Axelrod about whether Libya would become an issue should both he and Clinton run, Webb threw up his hands and responded, “Stay tuned.”

Webb also talked up his role as a senator in the United States’ pivot to Asia and its opening of relations with Myanmar, saying that he began pushing for the pivot during the Bush administration, without pointing out that Clinton was not yet secretary of state at that time.

“I became the first American leader to visit that country,” he said of Myanmar, also known as Burma. “We started opening up the relations, and the Burmese are moving much, much more closely to an open democracy.” Webb’s portrayal of his role in the initiatives could steal thunder from Clinton, who’s likely to tout them as top accomplishments of her tenure at state.

Axelrod also asked Webb whether the prospect of raising a billion dollars or more to fund a presidential campaign weighed on his decision-making as he contemplates a run.

“It is the great intimidator,” said Webb — who earlier referred to himself as a “very bad fundraiser” — adding, “I don’t know how to get around this.”

Another questioner asked Webb if he thinks he really has a shot at beating Clinton, who has been polling around 60 percent in the Democratic primary while Webb polls around 1 percent.

“Early poll numbers can always be tricky,” Webb responded. “They’re almost more name identification at this point.” He pointed out that Bill Clinton also polled in the low single digits at the beginning of his first White House run.

Asked point-blank about his intentions, Webb gave no indication whether he planned to enter the race. “We’re taking it a day at a time,” he said.

Webb travels to Iowa from Thursday through Sunday to meet with voters and Democratic Party leaders.

Webb — who served as Ronald Reagan’s secretary of the Navy — has said he’ll decide this spring whether to enter the race. Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley has said he’s operating on the same time frame. Clinton is expected to announce her run this month.

In November, Webb became the first potential candidate to form an exploratory committee. In January, he hired journalist Craig Crawford as his communications director. Last month, he hired Rania Batrice, a staffer on John Edwards’ 2008 presidential campaign, to run his Iowa efforts.