On Day One, the next president should learn and apply the right lessons from war in Iraq. These lessons go beyond tactical mistakes: the next administration must recognize that nation-building is an extraordinarily complex undertaking, that Americans would not have supported the war in Iraq if they had known its costs at the outset, and that they will not support future wars of choice that do not contribute directly to U.S. national security.
The next U.S. president needs to end U.S. support for the practice of nation-building--is not something that the U.S. is good at and failing states do not threaten U.S. national security interests.
