The debate focused on the questions, "What should the U.S. foreign policy priorities be?" and "Who, Bush or Gore, will handle them better and why?"
Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush was represented by his foreign policy adviser Dov Zakheim and Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., while Democratic nominee Al Gore was represented by his foreign policy adviser Bruce Jentleson and Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I.
The two camps of advisers disagreed about which candidate was better equipped to handle foreign policy as president - with Democrats contending that only Gore has foreign policy experience and Republicans countering that Bush's time as the governor of Texas readied him for the foreign policy arena.
But both sides agreed that military strength is key to strong foreign policy. "America will best serve the world if we can say to dictators, `Don't even think about it,'" Smith said. "And we can only say that if we have a strong military."
Reed expressed similar sentiments. "Only through forward engagement, transforming our forces to make them ready for tomorrow, will we be safe."
Though the two sides shared similar views on military strength, the leadership skills of both candidates quickly came into question. Zakheim criticized Gore's leadership skills and lack of credibility.
"Being a leader means setting priority. It's not about knowing the capitals of countries," Zakheim said. "The issue is to know how to deal with people."
But Jentleson countered by pointing out Bush's lack of foreign policy experience. "The key here is experience and expertise," Jentleson said. "Al Gore has a sense of globalization."
Both the senators and advisers stayed after the 90-minute debate to take questions from the audience, which covered such topics as U.S. policy towards India, China and terrorism.
