US lost its global influence under Obama: Bolton

Republican hawk John Bolton says the United States has lost influence and respect around the world under the leadership of President Barack Obama.

In an interview with The Hill on Thursday, Bolton said Obama’s failures on foreign policy and national security were key factors in the big Republican victory in Tuesday’s midterm elections.

Republicans expanded their majority to at least 243 in the 435-memeber House of Representatives and are poised to capture more seats which would give them the biggest majority in over sixty years. They also picked up at least seven more seats in the Senate, securing a majority in the 100-member chamber.

Bolton, who has served in several Republican administrations and is now a potential 2016 White House contender, said “It was a vote about a failure of presidential leadership, driven in large measure, in my view, by the international failures.”

“What the voters measure is performance, and when they see failure internationally, they read it correctly in my view as failure of leadership,” he added.

Bolton said Americans had feel that Washington had lost influence and respect universally. “I think that was out there playing in almost all the races because I think voters tend to look at foreign policy by the executive branch as a surrogate indicator for presidential leadership.”

A GOP-dominated Congress is set to make life difficult for a president who is looking to establish his legacy with his second term entering a lame-duck phase.

Democrats also blame Obama for their losses in the Senate, saying they were beleaguered by a deeply unpopular White House.

According to reports, both parties have thrown more than $4 billion at the months-long campaign.

Political commentators say that the US political system is designed to prevent any substantial change, and that the US democracy is dominated by dollar and lacks the essential features of a real democracy.