Two areas of Florida's foreign policy:
Democracy in Cuba and the War on Terrorism and in Iraq
This page is part of an undergraduate assignment for Davidson College
Cuba:
Betty Castor supports democracy in Cuba and even believes in free travel between the United States and Cuba (activote). She believes that free travel in addition to pressuring the Cuban regime will lead to a democracy in Cuba (bettynet). Martinez strongly supports Bush’s plan to Free Cuba by undermining Castro’s regime. He has also publicized his Cuban background and escape to America in television ads and public speeches.
War on terrorism/ War in Iraq:
Castor supports building alliances and cooperating with the international community to achieve democracies in Afghanistan and Iraq (bettynet). Martinez supports Bushes actions in the War in Iraq and stated that “ we need a Commander-in-Chief who realizes that there is pure evil in the world and who is willing to be a leader --- to protect American citizens against terrorism, without a permission slip from the United Nations” (melforsenate).
Representation:
With regard to Cuba, Martinez utilizes his Cuban identity to create a descriptive representation (Pitkin). This will likely give Martinez the upper hand in this area of foreign policy because he has personal experience in the matter. Castor, alternately, utilizes a symbolic representation (Pitkin). She cannot substantively represent her constituents because her approach to obtaining Cuban democracy is merely a single means of reaching the goal. Her entire constituency may be concerned with reaching the goal of democracy in Cuba, but likely have different (or no) ideas about how to go about it. In this sense, Castor presumably believes that her approach to Cuba is the best way to reach the goal based on her knowledge about the issues. Martinez’s descriptive representation allows him to better represent his constituency in this area.
Both Candidates represent the War on Terrorism and Iraq symbolically, taking different approaches in order to represent their respective constituents. Martinez is closely aligned with Bush’s foreign policy and his decision to go ahead without support from the UN. To this end, he has criticized Kerry’s position, claiming that Kerry is “preoccupied with ‘rejoining the community of nations’” (melforsenate). Not only does Martinez represent his constituents symbolically on foreign policy, he uses his foreign policy to connect himself to Bush. This connection to Bush allows him to symbolically represent Bush’s policies, which will likely help him get votes from Bush supporters who may not be certain of Martinez’s specific issues. Similarly, Castor’s symbolic representation on foreign policy rejects Bush’s foreign policies and supports Kerry's lean towards cooperation with the international community. The symbolic representation of both candidates symbolically aligns them with their respective parties.
Created by Meredith Lorenz
Last updated: 10/15/2004.
Political Science 318: Strategy and Ethics in Election Campaigns