Foreign Policy Should Be Debated By Candidates [OPINION]

I decided to limit the debate I am hosting between Congressman William Keating and Peter Tedeschi this morning to foreign policy, because it is often ignored by the media.

There is a tendency to ignore foreign policy decisions in the United States until there is no choice but to face the consequences of those decisions. I have found most candidates and elected officials are passionate and interested in discussing their thoughts and actions on matters of foreign policy, but they don't have a mainstream public outlet available to them.

The conversations are segregated to Washington think tanks and journals with a small readership. Later, when something goes wrong, the historians dig out the articles and the speeches from those publications and think tanks, and explain how the decisions were made. I'm grateful for the think tanks and the policy journals, and they have an important role in our society.

The folks who listen to WBSM and talk radio, in general, are interested in foreign policy and keep themselves informed year round. The talk radio audience is by no means in agreement, but they are uniquely engaged on the subject because they are conscientiously opting in to absorb the information rather than ignoring it. Liberals and conservatives often find themselves in agreement on individual matters of war, peace, trade and immigration.

I am also doing this debate for the men and women of our nation who have answered the call of our government. The debate is dedicated to our fellow Americans who left the comforts of home to make the world a safer and better place.

I think of the people I know who joined the Peace Corps to take their skills to help underdeveloped nations and to spread the best of American values. This debate is for Bill Short of Mattapoisett, who served our country in Central America during the Cold War because he was inspired by President John F. Kennedy. I think of my fraternity brother Sam Kennedy, who graduated from UMass and went off to Mali, Africa at the height of the AIDS epidemic in the 1990's.

This debate is for the men and women who served in our military. I think of Tyler Trahan of Freetown and Joseph Camara of New Bedford. Both were killed overseas, fighting terrorism. I mention these individuals by name because we all know people like them and they are the individuals who respond to the foreign policy decisions made by our elected officials in Washington, D.C.

Be sure to tune in to our debate this morning at 10 a.m. on 1420 WBSM, the WBSM app or watch it live on the WBSM YouTube channel.

Chris McCarthy is the host of The Chris McCarthy Show on 1420 WBSM New Bedford. He can be heard weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon. Contact him at chris.mccarthy@townsquaremedia.com and follow him on Twitter @Chris_topher_Mc. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.