"washington journal." next, we will take you live to a discussion on the 2020 presidential election and the candidates's foreign policy agendas. it has just gotten underway, hosted by the atlantic council. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2020] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] we alluded to how our next president about whether donald trump or joe biden, may approach foreign policy and america's relations with our friends and allies. it is these key foreign policy themes and the road ahead to november that we are here to talk about today. we launched this series in a conversation with secretary of state hillary clinton, spoke most recently with ambassador robert o'brien, and today we close with our cochairs, ambassador colleen bell. today's halftime report will be moderated by our very own damon wilson, executive vice president of the atlantic council. damon's impressive career has been on strengthening the nato alliance and fostering a transatlantic partnership capable of really tackling challenges and promoting common values. before passing the microphone over to damon, who is in our studio now, i want to remind everyone that you can find everything you need to know about the elections 2020 series, including any episode you might have missed, atlanticcouncil.org/elections202 0. don't forget to follow us on twitter using the hashtag. on to you, damon. thank you so much. damon: thank you so much for the introduction. welcome, everyone. i am delighted to welcome you to today's halftime report. hobby so for this, we are out of the stretch of the last two weeks of the democratic nominating convention. we are at our have to report so today we will take stock on where we are on foreign policy issues in the campaign in a way that is consistent with who we are, the atlantic council, an institution committed to shaping the future together, how the u.s. works with our friends and allies to shape a better future. today's conversation will be between our cochairs. bym joined on the screen ambassador colleen bell, who is with us from california live. welcome, ambassador bell. and to her left, we have the ambassador joining us from here in washington. i will turn to them in a second. as roberta said, we have been drawing on the chatter and input and comment of all of you during this series. please feel free to use the hashtag. send us your comments, questions. apple fire this debate on what is america's role in the world -- amplify this debate on, what is america's role in the world? these two serve as cochairs of the atlantic council. in essenceth my bosses and board directors of the council but they are extraordinary women who bring some common attributes to this. extraordinary energy and passion about the issues and america's role in the world they understand the connection between our health at home and leadership abroad. they bring a problem-solving east coast throughout their career and some fun to these topics as well and a real sense of optimism at a time of challenging issues out there. ambassador colleen bell is joining us from california because she is serving as the executive director of the california film commission. i got to know her well when she was u.s. ambassador to hungary and handled remarkably well complicated assignments for the u.s. adequate time. in a difficult time. also servesaula debris o as the vice chair of the atlantic council strategy and security where we focus on the big issues. council aftere having served as the longest ever under secretary of state for global affairs where she has an extra ordinary portfolio ranging from northern ireland to tibet and a long career in government over five presidents working at the white house with russia, ukraine, many issues. both of these are renaissance women. we turn to you to to help cochair this election 2020 effort. first of all, thank you. thank you for your time and service. it is a real pleasure. perhaps if we might, why don't we jump right in? basically, we just finished the dnc last week. the week before. the rnc last week. the democrats were first out of the gate. what would you offer as a couple of key takeaways, highlights of the foreign policy issues that emerged during the debates at the convention and this series? ambassador bell: i can lay out a bit about the democratic platform, the party's proposal criticizing china trade practices and proposing less spending on national defense and opposing what was referred to as these forever wars. differencest between the democrats and president trump. they also were seeking to bridge the gap between the party's more progressive wings and bidens more moderate approach. moderates more approach. stancets took a strong against china trade policies. that was strong. they also took a stance against human rights, china's human rights record, and also stressed the need to work with international allies to counter china. in regard to international alliances, which i believe are extremely important of course, it said that not enough has been support our american diplomatic efforts abroad and our international commitments and our relationships with our allies. in turn, that has tarnished our credibility as a country. democrats promised to repair relationships with governments across the world, including europe and africa. vice president biden has focused many of his foreign policy plans on rebuilding those relationships with allies and cooperating with international institutions, particularly now as we find ourselves in the middle of a pandemic. also, the democratic platform called for reducing military spending, which was in sharp contrast to president trump, who has championed an increase in defense spending. the democratic position is that we can maintain a stronger defense and protect our security and safety for less. trump haveand promised to decrease u.s. troop levels overseas. the democratic platform calls for any support for the saudi led war in that country. on iran, it rejects regime change as a u.s. policy goal. there are quite a few differences when it comes to a foreign policy represented by both the administration and bided. damon: thank you. thank you, ambassador bell. we turnor dobriansky, to you. we wrapped up the republican national convention. foreign policy is never at the forefront of any particular convention but what did you see as the main issues coming out of the previous coming out of the previous? convention?sky amb. dobriansky: first, it is a pleasure to be with you. it is a pleasure to be a cochair with colleen and participating in this effort led by the atlantic council. it has been terrific. you know, your question, it is interesting because in the republican national convention, every day foreign policy had been focused on. actually, there were countless speeches which had components and underpinnings relevant to particularly the achievements of the trump administration. i would first start by saying that some of the broad core themes were looking at that it is not just about what you say but also what actions you take. and i think that the republican to getion really strived across that there were a number of promises made and that they have been fulfilled. wasfor example in that area that many administrations in the past have spoken about moving our embassy to jerusalem and that this was something that there have been different views on but this administration said it was going to do it, and it did it. i would also say there was another underpinning that tied different days together, and that was the theme of america first. here, i think it was also clarified, what does america first mean? looking atst means the interest for most of american citizens and whatever national security interests are, but that is not include the exclusion of international engagement and america's leadership in the world. i think it was juxtaposed and laid out very clearly how important those components are but not at the expense of american citizens. in this regard, a very graphic example that was highlighted was the push relevant to the very important nato alliance and how in the context of nato that by advancing and really pressuring that we have to have burden sharing across the board. the burden cannot just be on the united states alone. , what we get in the end was cited $130 billion that has been put into the alliance. and actually a pledge of $4 billion now by all of the members of the alliance in the year and through 2024. very cores another broad theme. let me mention a few specifics if i mademay, because over each of the nights what basically transpired were different areas that have been highlighted. sanctions. sanctions have been imposed on a number of countries that have veryy either had aggressive behavior, have challenged our national security interests, countries like china, iran, north korea, russia, for example. it was also highlighted about the importance of the military. colleen mentioned the in the democratic national convention. in the republican national convention, there was the theme of peace through strength. that was definitely important to up our military. here, it was not only the issue of hardware. this gets into cyber. also, there was the spotlight about the investment in space and the space force and all that portends for the protection of our national security interest. in the trade domain, there was a spotlight certainly on the upgrading of nafta, the north american free trade agreement, in which the u.s., mexico, canada agreement was concluded. the middle east loomed large over the days. and we saw secretary of state pompeo speak actually from israel. here, there was the groundbreaking diplomatic agreement concluded between israel and the united arab emirates, which was truly groundbreaking and has tremendous consequences for middle east peace going forward. i already mentioned jerusalem, which was a promise that was kept. and let me just mention two more. isis the eradication of here, which was a major area and a major promise relevant to the administration. it spotlighted it. and the taking out of here in this case abu bakr al-baghdadi. iran,so in this case in kasim soleimani. that was another thing. and let me just conclude on this note. china. i mentioned the sanctions of china. but china was also spotlighted in quite a few cases. and not only because of the origins of the pandemic, but also because of the kind of predatory trade and economic behavior. so in short, let me say those are the broad themes. those are some of the specifics. what was interesting to me was that actually every day had a foreign policy component to it. perhaps, colleen as well, we saw the elections were the diding force and yet it permeate the conversation quite a bit. let me ask, a lot of people are saying this is one of the most consequential elections of our lifetime. they are contrasting the different temperament between president trump and vice president biden. did you see some areas perhaps of convergence? could you see some common themes that actually might transcend some of our polarized politics on national security? paula, do you want to start with that and colleen pick that up? did you see some common purpose across the aisle? amb. dobriansky: i will say that even if i may say prior to the holding of the conventions, i think it is worth noting that there has been bipartisan support which we particularly have seen in the legislative addressing the really predatory trade and economic behavior of china and how crucial it is to address that. that that cannot go unaddressed. there have been some differences over what specific approaches should be. i would also add to that particularly with the onset of the pandemic. i think here you also have the executive branch aligned with the legislative branch and focusing on supply chains. the concern about the origins actually of the pandemic and how and why there should be an investigation. and then our supply chains, particularly for those kinds of medical equipment or equipment that really has ramifications for our national security and america's interests that need to be revisited. because there was grave concerns and there are grave concerns about the lack of transparency and how many of the exports from american companies in china could not export out personal protective equipment to the united states. this is one area that even before the convention i would say was an area that there has been a kind of support, bipartisan support that has been galvanized. damon: thank you. amb. bell: thank you. i would just like to add to paula's point that there has been bipartisan support for russian interference in elections. that is something where both parties are coming together, recognizing how that impacts our security and democracy moving forward. so the shared interest in that. and also, the strong disinformation campaigns that have been growing and permeating with maligned efforts and intentions from some of our adversaries. i do believe on those two points in addition to what polish shared that there is bipartisan support for that. damon: what would you say are the biggest divergence? a difference in approach, whether talking about climate or international institutions, but there are some real stark differences. you think a particular issue represents the biggest divergence between the two choices the american people face or is it a broader approach? do you want to continue without them ambassador bell? amb. bell: i think it is divergence, in particular unfocused policies in particular unfocused policies. but by and large, it is this move from multilateralism to unilateralism. we have built and participated yearsy during the obama entered and with good faith with our allies to many agreements like the paris climate accord, with our trade agreements, with the jcpoa, etc. president trump decided to withdraw from those. divergence, tone o, this sort of america first but in terms of a really strong reduction in the focus for international engagement in so many ways with our multilateral organizations and otherwise. playsould say that heavily and weighs heavily at this point because of the situation we are in with the pandemic. as we know, this virus knows no borders. and we will need to work collectively together with our international partners moving needs bothmeet the economic and healthwise that have been created by this pandemic. damon: thank you. ambassador dobriansky, how would you respond to that? amb. dobriansky: i think there are a number of areas where there are differences. ashink in the defense area we already discussed, i think the republican trump administration has been very clear that it is essential to really put and invest in the military given the kinds of global challenges that exist, that we do have to be vigilant. that appears to be one area. but a second one is over the issue of burden sharing. i think that this administration felt very strongly that it could not leave unaddressed the question of our alliances, and in particular the nato alliance, and how crucial it was not just to have the united states take on the lion share. but i want to say this because here we are at the atlantic council, which places an important premium on alliances. i think it also came out very clearly in a number of speeches that were delivered during the republican national convention that alliances and allies are very important. it is not about disengaging or about unilateralism. it is about how we actually engage on what terms. in that sense, it is not moving away from that engagement, but , i think even in the president's own remarks, he cited nato secretary-general stoltenbergand how very proudly himself said, look, we moved forward, we have gotten these not only pledges but countries have moved forward in terms of their burden sharing, so that was another. and let me just mention a third and a last. i think it is just the issue over how one approaches, and to use your term, damon, the approach taken towards international institutions. here, i think the issue is looking at the investment that we make and american taxpayers specifically put into the investment in multilateral institutions or international institutions. what do we get from it? are we maligned? are we having success on foreign policy? so there have been some real differences there i think between republicans and democrats over the investment that is made and how much reliance one makes on those institutions when it comes to foreign policy. damon: i want to ask you a question about engaging the american people on this conversation. in large part, a lot of people do not follow up on foreign policy national security every day over the past year have seen the endless wars, felt a deterioration of the economic rural in particular america. we have gone through a great recession and are now in a global pandemic, a threat to an even more serious economic case. the atlantic council mission is about securing the future together. out as the u.s. work with friends and allies to shape a better future? aboutf you are passionate this. ambassador bill, you produce shows that reach millions of people with messages. ambassador dobriansky has been a passionate teacher. she is teaching a class right now out of georgetown passionate about training the next generation. how do you see the ability to engage the american people to understand that engagement in the world can be good for our interests and values rather than the scary thing that brings us problems all the time? how do you think about that conundrum that plays out in the electoral field? ambassador bell? amb. bell: yeah. job, we can do a better kind of highlighting the importance of globalization and how we work towards globalization, how the freedom of business, services, finances, people, and ideas, how that supports economic prosperity and security and peace in the world. i do not know how the word globalization i, somehow part negativecame connotations for so many people because we really rely on that for prosperity and for peace. i think we need to do a better job of sharing with the american people the importance and beefits of that and also to critical thinkers when it comes to consuming news. ourrtunately, there strong disinformation campaigns that are out there. we know that. but they continue to permeate. we have the ability to influence public opinion in very negative and compromising ways. paul of being a teacher, she understands the importance of critical thinkers when it comes to consuming news. that happens through education as it happens through some of the great journalists out there reporting accurately and so well on so many of our domestic issues and international and foreign policy toues and really just trying create a framework for people that is maybe smaller because there is so much information out there. how do we do that? i know there are a lot of people who are working on that. it is something i think about all the time, too. damon: how do we meet audiences where they are as well? amb. bell: that's right. damon: ambassador dobriansky? amb. dobriansky: thank you. first, let me go to the atlantic council. i think the atlantic council has done an incredible job of reaching out in various different ways to the american through its senior fellows and the fact that it has had so many centers. i mean, the latin america center, the energy center, the eurasian, i can go on. i could list all of them and take up all the time. they get out. how do they get out? through a lot of different great institutions like the world affairs council's of america. i used to be the chairman of the national board of the world affairs council. there is the american committee of for policy. all of these have networks across the united states and they bring in think tank experts who get challenged. they get challenged. they get challenged in so many different ways. and then of course the universities and of course students because the students represent the next generation. and in this case, i can tell you that the class i do teach, for example, i am at georgetown and connected to harvard, and in both cases let's just take georgetown university, the graduate students who are in the school getting their masters in the school of foreign service -- in fact, interesting data point. almost all of them are onward to the foreign service, which tells you they are interested in foreign policy. they are internationally engaged. so in this case, actually that outreach to the next generation does really matter. in this sense, i think the atlantic council is doing a great service. and i am positive colleen feels this way because that is why the two of us signed up to be together to cochair here because we are making a difference. we are having an impact. in reaching out to that generation. amb. bell: i also haadd, we have different medical missions around the world and the work we do in educational opportunities to bring people together. i would just like to highlight those because we have so many talented, amazing people do such great work. amb. dobriansky: i will add one more. you know what that is? aery administration puts out national security strategy permitted in the national security strategy issued by the trump administration, there is a section that relates to exchanges and how crucial exchanges are. in this context built upon what colleen just said because our students go on exchanges. and there are cultural exchanges. there are sports exchanges. all of these make a difference, that kind of connectivity. damon: both of you are ambassadors. one of the questions that has come into us is acknowledging you are both ambassadors. how can you use this diplomatic capability to reinforce global norms and how do you see the role of the state department in the next administration where there has been a lot of talk about investment of civil versus military priorities? ambassador bell first and then ambassador dobriansky. amb. bell: it is proven that the investment in civil comes back to the american people in spades. i can tell you that these missions abroad are not working with big budgets. i know. but they do extraordinary work on very small budgets. i am a strong proponent in continuing to invest in our foreign service officers, in our missions abroad, in our depomed experts that come -- diplomatic experts that come. they are able to grow economic opportunities come engagement, focus on security, and just excellent work they do is important that the american people understand how important the work is of our diplomatic missions. they need the funding. the funding is well used. damon: ambassador dobriansky? amb. dobriansky: thank you. our embassies abroad are on the front lines representing our national security interests and the interests of america as a whole. in that sense, here you have not only foreign service officers who are there, but you also have other agencies, not just the state department. the department of commerce. of course, the department of defense. the department of agriculture. and it goes on. we have to remember that here it is not just only the state department, that many of our embassies -- how crucial it is. and also in that regard, you have foreign service nationals. the key point is that it is on the front lines just as we really revere our military, who are on the front lines and defending us. also, our men and women in the foreign service, civil service, and foreign service nationals, at americay looking and our embassies and our national interests. had some fun over the past two weeks. we had quite a few folks come on board. theamped up with national security advisor and lots in between. can you take one moment or speaker or event, something over the past two weeks that really struck you, that was a highlight for you in our context of truck to bring some color to the importance of america's role in the world? paula, do you want to start, ambassador dobriansky and then ambassador bell? amb. dobriansky: absolutely. i have to say the highlight for me was the interview with ambassador robert o'brien, who is the national security advisor to united states president donald trump. in this interview, i think that he really shared a lot of the kinds of not only achievements of the administration but he placed a real premium on the importance of our allies, of our alliances, but also the need for economic strength and for military strength. interview wase very comprehensive, very insightful, and i think a very important message that he conveyed. damon: terrific. ambassador bell? amb. bell: it is hard to pick one, frankly. but i always enjoy listening to wendy sherman. she is just somebody i regard so highly with so much respect. she always provides such interesting insights and historical perspective on so many of the issues that she has been working on the frontline on for many many years. just an excellent panel. and i really enjoyed that. theme, the the torall theme, the need continue to build and strengthen our international alliances. damon: one of the questions that has come into #acelections2020 is about the conversation we had when they talk a lot about the importance of technology and cyber security and foreign policy and national security. how do you see technology, which was not really thought of as a foreign-policy national security center,w is front and how do you see this as the next administration needs to grapple with? how does it fit into a foreign-policy agenda? ambassador bell, you are joining us from california, so let's start with you. amb. bell: well, technology, i think it is particularly interesting when it comes to china and some other state a strongo have proven desire and some success for stealing america's intellectual properties. in participating in cyber espionage against american companies i think in terms of technology that is something we really need to focus on. it is a huge economic threat and security threat for all of us. but also come in terms of technology in a positive way, what an extraordinary experience to be in election time right now and still having these modified desk due to cobit, so many people teleworking, social distancing expectations, the inability to come together in a traditional convening manner that we had before through all the elections of my lifetime, watching how everybody has adopted to meet these new extraordinary circumstances, and we were able to do it with technology. damon: it is pretty extraordinary that without this technology, we may not have campaigns. we would not be having this permitted the atlantic council would be crippled. remarkable how it is empowered in our country right now. amb. bell: true. it is true. damon: ambassador dobriansky, how do you see it for the next administration? amb. dobriansky: it is ultimately critical. i would say in a way, it has been critical. certainly the positions taken on china and huawei, that has already been an issue where administrationmp have taken a strong position against, has encouraged our allies and friends not go down that path. i would say it already is here. i think that panel just really magnified how it spans into many areas. also, the investment into our state force, which also was highlighted during the republican national convention. underscores as well the crucial dimension of technologies. i think it has already been on the agenda but it is even magnified at present and will definitely continue to be on the agenda of the next administration. damon: so we have a few weeks and months until the actual election. we talk about in our country october surprises. at the atlantic council, we talk about the august surprises when people want to be on vacation. protests on the streets of belarus, saber rattling in the south china sea, the dramatic deal between israel and the uae. the world is not just go static as we go into election time. what do you see between now and november? this is coming in from one of our questions, which i think is fantastic. what do you see as the biggest unknown for u.s. foreign policy headed into november? what do you see out there that can really surprise folks on the international stage before the vote? ambassador dobriansky, do you want to start? amb. dobriansky: you know, that is a difficult question to really answer with precision. we i only say that because witnessed just literally -- in fact, at the time we conducted the interview with the national security advisor robert o'brien, their work news reports abou coming in saying that chind a spyd that there was plane that had intervened in military exercises that were being conducted there. you know, let me just say that as we know internationally there are situations that can arise on the spur of the moment. at the same time, that also underscores really the position, ourour position of strength politically, economically, and militarily. you mentioned belarus. it was also mentioned, belarus. we see that playing out. what does that portend? i think there have been concerns from countries in europe about what kinds of actions might be undertaken from moscow. there again, we have sanctions that are in place. and i think that also there have actionsat we witnessed that have resulted from inappropriate maligned russian behavior, we have seen action that has been taken. i have to say it is hard to predict international affairs. that is the challenge. there can be unpredictably. but i do think we are terms of theed in political, economic, and military foundation to handle it. damon: thank you. ambassador bell. amb. bell: yes. i would just like to say i agree with paula, that we are well-positioned. and withstrong country built-in structures to defend and promote our interests. that being said, i do not want to speculate too much at any threat. i think the world is having a tough enough time right now with covid being here. is thing to realize too despite this global pandemic, conflicts around the world continue to go on. are of those conflicts business as usual despite the fact that we are in this critical state. that, you know, there is always the threat of cyber attacks, that type of thing. but moving forward, as paula mentioned, we have the institutions in place and our various agencies and structures to hopefully manage and respond to anything that could come up. amb. dobriansky: by the way, if i may just make one qualifying point, when those reports came spy plane -- by the way, it is worth noting the administration was right in there and robert o'brien in the interview addressed this. there was no such crossing over any line. that is the unpredictability. when you have countries that make unfounded claims and statements, that is why we have to know what we are dealing with. that is why sanctions are in place dealing with china these days. damon: i want to start to bring us to a close with maybe two questions we have here. one came in from one of our viewers that really speaks to something the atlantic council has been grappling with. i will on th understanding what are the underpinnings of american foreign policy? how does the united states at home influenced the u.s. role in the world? how does the domestic turmoil that is happening across our country, on our streets, how does it influence the u.s. ability to lead on the international stage? ambassador bell? amb. bell: right. sewingn terms of disunity and disruption, we know that there are maligned efforts to do that. here in the united , we are stronger and better as a country to defend ourselves when we are more united as a country. whicheverthat administration goes forward, there will be a strong focus on uniting some of the divide that exists within our country. a -- itit is not just does impact and have the potential to negatively impact our national security. --hink we really need to more people need to understand that moving forward. damon: certainly. certainly. ambassador dobriansky? amb. dobriansky: i think there are three factors here. first is one that colleen just referenced, and that is where you have as we know some external forces that have intervened and incited some of the turmoil that we have witnessed in the united states. that, which ih think the second factor is the very strength of the united states and the approach is the premium that is in fact placed online order. and when there are areas of law and order that don't work right, we look at reforms. that is also part of our process. that is one thing that i think i always hear, particularly from abroad. many speak to our strength. our strength is that on one hand we have definitely a rule of law that undergirds our society. we also have an underpinning of law and order. but we also have a built in system of looking at those areas that might not be working and where we need to bring about some change. thirdly, i would just add that we have always had a transparency. you know, when you look at other , that is why people want to come to this country. because of the transparency. because of the opportunities. because of innovation. is that i, my view think actually a lot of what has happened has actually unified our country in some very significant ways. damon: i want to just close by bringing it back to we are the linick council. we do not do politics, but we do do strategy. i want to bring it back to one of the things i have been working on. part of what i try to do is with, whatwhat we do are strategies that we could find common ground on for the country? when i listen to completely different rhetoric and the political polarization, i do see the potential for thinking about a model for a new sense of american leadership, so let me get your reaction to this because you hear often america can't do it all. we do not want to be the world's policeman. the burden is all on us. but you also cannot really opt out and just say we are stepping out of this, we don't want to be part of it. that will impact us adversely as well. also, we cannot just order people around. the world has changed quite a bit since 1945. i just wonder if in the midst of different political rhetoric a new model of american leadership and we look at how we catalyze solutions, that we will not do everything. we cannot lead everything but we can be a catalytic power in helping to bring countries together to take on some of the big issues out there systematically where leadership still matters. that burden is not as heavy on our shoulders. i am just wondering, i wonder if the atlantic council, as we develop the concepts of strategies, do you see the potential for an approach about a paradigm of american leadership in the world that could actually enjoy the support of both sides of the aisle and probably even more importantly some of the american public? let me close just asking you, paula and colleen in that order, to comment. amb. dobriansky: i will take your question in a little bit of a different direction. i think we do have the principles and concepts for american leadership, but i think that i look at the global arena and i think that one of the spaces that the atlantic council has worked on and actually i think can even amplify and look at expanding and that is where we have some not only our traditional alliances, but i newt i would call our or expanded alliances. here, the council has done a lot of work in the indo pacific. i am someone who is an advocate for the quadrilateral security dialogue, which places australia, india, japan, and the united states. i will give you an example of something that just happened only a couple of months ago. and that was that not only was the participation level elevated where in this case secretary pompeo elevated it to the ministers of foreign affairs, which is a good thing, involve them together, but there was a meeting that took place that brought in south korea, vietnam, and new zealand. and in doing all of this, what did it do? it actually brought all of these countries together to talk about not just the security issues, but quite frankly, to talk about economic issues, the impact of covid, and how covid actually would be affecting supply chains. and there were concerns and need to galvanize support. all of the countries i mentioned have had great concerns about china, about its predatory trade actions. so in this case, actually, a space that i think is worth looking at this new alignment and how one can actually maximize all those new alignments and where interests converge. i don't think that we need to look at necessarily set paradigms for operating. i think that we should be more agile and really look at how there is a great deal of movement in this regard. damon: thank you. thank you, paula. colleen, please. amb. bell: people do and historically have looked to the , ated states as a leader leader of so much, in terms of security, promotion of human rights, social justice, democracy, etc. i am quite proud of the american values, proud of our principles, institutions, respect for rule of law. -- these ares things that have translated to significant economic prosperity for our wonderful country and what we have been able to do with that is take that and to go abroad into trying to not only influence, but really support other nations because in so doing that it helps us overall in terms of the broader picture forrds our opportunities continued and economic prosperity and growth moving forward and security as well. i agree with paula when she said building on our traditional alliances but also looking for expanded alliances moving forward.that could be a place . i would also like to bring it back to where we are because this is elections 2020, america's role in the world. this is a point where as i have been canvassing and reading and talking about all sorts of posters and everything else, the american people by and large want more bipartisanship on these important issues moving forward. politicswant to let interfere with the bipartisan forrts that are necessary maintaining, keeping, promoting peace and security in the world and what that means. i would just also like to highlight that point as well. amb. dobriansky: damon, i know we are concluding and that was our last question. i thinkant to also say colleen made a very important point, and i want to conclude by amplifying it. that is our values do matter greatly and ever leadership matters greatly. -- our leadership matters greatly. of theid at the outset expanded alliances, i think that very tradition speaks for itself and that should maintain itself. that is absolutely key. so as you are looking at -- i think i heard you say new paradigms. that is a foundation that remains and should remain the same. damon: thank you so much. i have to say what fabulous cochairs, ambassador bell, ambassador dobriansky. this was a fantastic halftime report if you will. i just want to thank you. you have been terrific cochairs of this effort but also fantastic partners and leaders of the atlantic council. we really appreciate your leadership here in modeling the behavior that i think is going to be so good for our country. i just want to also close by thanking all of our audience who has been with us through this series. we want to encourage you, stick with us. you will see the discussions antonia fine on the atlantic council channel might be different from cable news channels or conventions themselves because we do not do politics but we do strategies, america's role in the world. at the council, we believe we are at an inflection point in history, that things are changing so dramatically. the decisions that are taken impactsll have over the coming decades. as our coaches just set them american leadership matters. and our mission is how to shape a better future, shape a better future together. stick with us. #acelections2020 . we will see you back for more programming. thank you. ♪ [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2020] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] >> you are watching c-span, your unfiltered view of government, created by america's cable television company as a service and brought to you by your television provider. >> coming up this afternoon, the national press club's newsmakers series will hold a discussion on college voters and the potential impact in this election year. we will have that live at 1:00 eastern on c-span two. later today, joe biden will be campaigning in pittsburgh live at 1:30 p.m. eastern here on c-span. you can also watch online at c-span.org or listen with the free c-span radio app. on tuesday, treasury secretary steven mnuchin testifies before the house oversight and reform committee on the urgent need for additional 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