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Note to "progressives": Dictators exist, and they do horrible things to the millions of people they subjugate. Many of these dictators just *love* what you say about nonintervention. If dictators are cheering your foreign policy, you have a problem.
It's actually possible to have a foreign policy that stands up to bullies, promotes the values of human rights, protects civil society, supports native agency, and holds dictators to account, all without invading everywhere. Speak about that. Not about "nonintervention".
Intervention isn't limited to dropping bombs. Legitimization of dictators is a form of intervention into their country's power dynamics. Selling weapons (or refusing to) is, too. Economic engagement (or sanctions), too. There's an entire menu of options. Speak about that.
Foreign policy isn't an all-or-none, either-or binary of "intervention" vs "nonintervention". Posing it that way is facile, simplistic, naive, deceptive, and is a profound problem. If this is all you have to say about foreign policy then you have no foreign policy.
Because let me be honest, whatever you do about your health care system or your economic inequality would be inspiring, but ultimately that's your problem. My problem is the dictators that are destroying my home region. You're not allies if you don't tackle dictators.
