Obama rejects GOP critique of his foreign policy record

President Obama is rejecting Republican attacks on his foreign policy record in a new interview, arguing that the successes of his administration will be clear to voters in a “serious debate.”

Obama, speaking with Time magazine, acknowledged that his approach has occasionally yielded “less than optimal” outcomes. But he said he was proud of the “pivot” from the policies pursued by his predecessor.

“Overall, I think it’s going to be pretty hard to argue that we have not executed a strategy over the last three years that has put America in a stronger position than it was when I came into office,” he told the magazine in an interview, excerpts of which were posted Wednesday.

Obama’s potential rivals, most notably Mitt Romney, continue to press the message that the president’s leadership has put the United States in a weaker position internationally. Romney has argued that Obama is in fact pursuing a policy of “appeasement,” and that he is ready to concede that the United States is no longer the world’s leading power.

The president described his approach as one that “recognizes the rise of countries like China, India and Brazil,” as well as “our limits in terms of resources and capacity.”

“And yet, what I think we’ve been able to establish is a clear belief among other nations that the United States continues to be the one indispensable nation in tackling major international problems,” he said.

Romney, in a Twitter message posted after portions of the Obama interview began circulating online, said that the Obama doctrine “is that America must recognize its limits. That is the wrong course for our nation.”