With the Iowa caucuses finished, attention now turns to New Hampshire with its first in the nation primary next Tuesday, January 10.  Three weeks ago, the USGLC held a town hall forum in the Granite State with high-level surrogates from the Gingrich, Paul, Perry, Romney, and Santorum campaigns.  For a preview of the candidates’ views on foreign policy, have a look at their discussion, as well as General Anthony Zinni’s keynote presentation.

Must Reads

Who’s In the News

Huckabee “frustrated” by 2012 campaign (O. Kay Henederson, IowaRadio)

The victor of the 2008 Republican Party Caucuses is urging Iowans to reject calls to cut foreign aid to Africa. 2012 Presidential candidates like Ron Paul and Rick Perry have vowed to make dramatic cuts in U.S. foreign aid, but former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee says that would send a “disastrous” message.  “If America wants to be known only as a country that puts bombs in neighborhoods, then that’s one thing,” Huckabee said during an interview with Radio Iowa. “But I think America also wants to be known as a country that puts food in the mouths of children in extreme poverty.”

Iowa caucus results: Mitt Romney edges Rick Santorum in Iowa (Bill Nichols, Politico)

Mitt Romney edged Rick Santorum by a mere eight votes in Tuesday’s Iowa caucuses — a margin that amounted to a tie in the crucial opening act of the 2012 presidential race and propelled the newly reshaped contest to New Hampshire and beyond.  After a three-way dead heat for much of the night, Romney and Santorum moved slightly ahead of Texas Rep. Ron Paul, who finished in third place.

Smart Power

Reversing the Terrorist Tide in Nigeria: The Need for Smart Power (Richard Joseph, The Brookings Institution)

What can the United States and other major countries do to help Nigeria address the immediate security crisis as well as safely navigate the remaining 40 months of Jonathan’s presidency? In the terminology of Joseph Nye, a smart power strategy is required to skillfully combine hard and soft power.

Politics/Foreign Policy

Lawmaker Decries Egyptian Military’s Attacks on NGOs, Calls for Withdrawal of Aid (Jonathan Broder, CQ)

A senior House appropriator on Tuesday warned that the Egyptian military’s recent raids on nearly a dozen non-governmental organizations focusing on democracy building and human rights have put U.S. aid to Egypt in jeopardy.  The threat to withhold funds from a country that has long ranked as one of America’s top recipients of foreign aid is the latest sign of just how uneasy some on Capitol Hill have become over the makeup of the new post-Arab Spring regime in Egypt.

Pakistan, U.S. assume less future cooperation (Anne Gearan and Kathy Gannon, Associated Press)

The change described by both Pakistani and U.S. officials follows a series of diplomatic crises over the past year that strained an already difficult partnership based around the U.S. goal of stability in Afghanistan and Pakistan and a reduction in Islamic-inspired terrorism.

Working Group on Egypt writes Secretary of State Clinton to express grave concern about assault against civil society groups in Egypt

The United States should use every tool at its disposal to persuade the Egyptian military to stop the assault on democracy and begin a real transition to civilian rule immediately. After a year of conversations with the SCAF by U.S. officials at all levels, it is clear that the message is not getting through; in fact, the SCAF’s behavior and social and economic conditions in the country have deteriorated markedly. Withholding military assistance is the only way to get the SCAF’s attention. The United States simply should not provide assistance to an Egyptian military that treats as criminals other Egyptians who also receive U.S. aid.