Dr. James P. Todhunter kicked off Foreign Policy Week with his lecture, “A Historical Overview of U.S. Foreign Policy and Contemporary Debates,” in the I-House on Monday evening.

Todhunter shared his thoughts on the outlook of American foreign relations after a concise review of the nation’s historical policies.

“The U.S. hasn’t come to answer in the role it will play in the post Sept. 11 world yet,” Todhunter said. “How is it going to engage, and how much should it engage? I think those are some of the debates we will see discussed over the course of this week.”

U.S. Foreign Policy Week is a project shared between the Baker Center, the Department of Political Science and the Center for International Education. Todhunter was slated to bring everyone up to speed on some of the issues American policymakers have faced and will face moving forward.

“I hope to ask some questions that the speakers the rest of the week can answer,” Todhunter said.

Students turned out to get a firmer handle on the context surrounding America’s foreign relations.

“Dr. Todhunter did a fantastic job surveying the evolution of American foreign policy since the creation of the republic, as well as situating modern foreign policy issues within the context of the upcoming elections,” Amanda Sanford, graduate student in political science, said.

Todhunter traced American foreign policy back to the nation’s advent.

“The Founding Fathers started asking how the U.S. should identify with the rest of the world almost immediately after the Constitution was signed,” Todhunter said.

He traced the development of foreign policy through its many stages, specifically detailing the U.S.’s transition out of unilateralism. Todhunter focused on the motivations underlying policy choices.

“The United States did engage with other countries, but it did so very selectively and opportunistically,” Todhunter said.

At the end of the lecture, Todhunter provided brief commentary on President Obama’s policy doctrine.

“After the 2010 midterms … you see a more cautious and pragmatic President Obama. The public wants the president to focus domestically, on the economy.”

Foreign Policy Week continued with a lecture by Dr. Brandon Prins on global security last night. Dr. Tony Spiva and Dr. Jon Shefner will speak on globalization in the Baker Center at 6 p.m. tonight.