American Conversations Minisodes: Foreign Policy

Compact Nation Podcast

This podcast minisode was created for students by students at St. Olaf College as part of the American Conversations project. For more information about these minisodes, check out season 4 episode 14, “American Conversations.” The ‘Foreign’ Factor: The Role of Foreign Policy in American Elections Kristian Noll, Aerin O’Malley, Duncan Forbes While Donald Trump’s unpredictable foreign policy has upended many of America’s relationships with other nations, few American voters value foreign policy as much as domestic issues in their vote choice. In this podcast, Aerin O’Malley, Kristian Noll, and Duncan Forbes identify three main issues important to most American voters—healthcare, economy, and electability—and explore how deeply each one is related to foreign policy. Ultimately, they argue that American voters should be more attuned to global developments and value foreign policy more in their voting choices, particularly in the context of the 2020 election.