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"Who better to talk to about tonight&amp;#x27;s final contentious standoff in the battleground state of Florida than American women living abroad (including one in Lebanon)? That&amp;#x27;s exactly what we did.Alex, 25, Lafayette, Calif. Journalist currently living in Beirut, Lebanon What&amp;#x27;s the most important foreign policy issue for you as an American living abroad? What do you hope to hear from the candidates? The most important foreign policy issue to me is the President&amp;amp;#8217;s Middle East agenda--ranging from the Iranian nuclear issue, the Arab uprisings and renewed efforts to address the Arab-Israeli conflict. I want to hear specific policies from the candidates about how they intend to approach these complicated issues, not overarching statements about &amp;amp;#8220;U.S. leadership&amp;amp;#8221; and &amp;amp;#8220;America&amp;amp;#8217;s moral authority.&amp;amp;#8221; I would also like to hear them express a bit of humility (I know, not a common trait in Presidential candidates). If the last year and a half of uprisings in the region has taught us anything about our policies, it&amp;amp;#8217;s that we cannot dictate fast-paced, complex events in the Middle East and that progress can be fleeting. An example would be the protests fueled by the anti-Islam movie. The U.S. government had nothing to do with the production of the film and in no way do I think the violence that resulted from its release is excusable, I think the events show just how fragile our relationship is with societies in the Arab and Muslim world. I would really like to hear our President acknowledge this complexity rather than pretend the U.S. has the ultimate power to shape world events. What&amp;#x27;s the most important foreign policy issue for you as an American living abroad? What do you hope to hear from the candidates? In the last election I cared more about our image abroad, which I think Obama has done a lot to improve. But that bump in likeability for the U.S. has faded. Obama&amp;amp;#8217;s Cairo speech reaching out to the Arab world was a great step but actions need to replace gestures. In particular, I&amp;amp;#8217;ve realized how important the Arab-Israeli conflict is to politics throughout the region. President Obama seems to have tabled the peace process in order to focus on the Arab Spring. In the U.S. this might seem like a reasonable approach, but for people here the issues are tied. America&amp;amp;#8217;s credibility is linked to our efforts and perceived fairness in promoting the peace process. So when the U.S. encourages democratic movements in the Middle East, Arabs see our words and actions through this prism, not as separate policies. What&amp;#x27;s the one question you&amp;#x27;d ask the candidates at tonight&amp;#x27;s debate if you could? I would ask the candidates about their policy in Syria. How far will they go to support the Free Syrian Army in its fight against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and why do they think the case for intervention in Syria different from the case in Libya? I think the Syrian crisis is the hottest current issue and it happens to most greatly affect the country where I&amp;amp;#8217;m living, Lebanon, which has seen a rise in violence recently billed as spillover from Syria. Also, because I honestly don&amp;amp;#8217;t know what policy the U.S. should follow, I want to hear what these two candidates can come up with and whether they take a thoughtful approach or resort to pre-packaged statements. And, of course, have you cast your absentee ballot yet? Yes! Casting an absentee ballot was surprisingly easy. My county emailed my ballot and I faxed it back last week. Krystin, 22, Overland Park, Kan. Student currently living in Edinburgh What&amp;#x27;s the most important foreign policy issue for you as an American living abroad? What do you hope to hear from the candidates? The most important foreign policy issue for me is how we are going to navigate our relationships with Middle Eastern states. The West and East, after all, are defined in opposition to each other, and as long as we have the mindset that those two spheres exist&amp;amp;#8212;without trying to understand how and why the other thinks as like they do&amp;amp;#8212;I don&amp;#x27;t believe true and lasting progress can be made. The complexities of the region go beyond just political ones, and it&amp;#x27;s going to take a clear head and steady hand to navigate those waters. I genuinely hope to hear the word &amp;quot;diplomacy&amp;quot; a lot from the candidates, as well as some quite concrete ideas about its practical applications in the Middle East. What&amp;#x27;s the one question you&amp;#x27;d ask the candidates at tonight&amp;#x27;s debate if you could? With Syria&amp;#x27;s eruption into violence, the ongoing strain between Iran and Israel (not to mention Israel and Palestine), and the continuing instability in Iraq and Afghanistan &amp;amp;#8212; to say nothing of Libya and Pakistan! &amp;amp;#8212; how can America remain in its role as a leader in foreign affairs without confusing it with that of a policeman? Have you cast your absentee ballot yet? Not yet! Although I&amp;#x27;m pretty sure who I&amp;#x27;m going to vote for, I want to let the debates finish up before officially turning the ballot in so I can feel like I heard both of them out properly. Melissa, 20, Winston-Salem, N.C. Student currently living in London What&amp;#x27;s the most important foreign policy issue for you as an American living abroad? What do you hope to hear from the candidates? Living abroad has made it incredibly apparent how powerfully American foreign policy affects the rest of the world. Our allies make sacrifices to support American goals, our enemies&amp;amp;#8217; successes and failures depend on the decisions of the Commander in Chief, and our financial policies play an important role in an increasingly globalized economy. I would like President Obama and Mr. Romney to specifically describe how they plan to handle the global debt crisis, Iran&amp;amp;#8217;s potential nuclear capabilities, and the remaining terrorist threats in the Middle East. Additionally, I hope that the candidates discuss their beliefs about America&amp;amp;#8217;s general role in international politics. Has that issue changed for you since the last election? In the last election, foreign policy discussions focused on America&amp;amp;#8217;s continued involvement in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Now that the Iraq War is over and troops are being withdrawn from Afghanistan, I am more interested in if and how the candidates will reevaluate America&amp;amp;#8217;s foreign policy goals and how they plan to keep defense spending in check. What&amp;#x27;s the one question you&amp;#x27;d ask the candidates at tonight&amp;#x27;s debate if you could? What do you believe is America&amp;amp;#8217;s future role in international security and development, and how do you plan on reconciling this role with the budgetary realities that the country faces? Have you cast your absentee ballot yet? As a matter of fact, I finished filling out my absentee ballot today! This was my first time being able to vote for a president, so it was a pretty exciting moment for me. Stephanie, 20, Paradise Valley, Ariz. Student currently living in Paris What&amp;#x27;s the most important foreign policy issue for you as an American living abroad? What do you hope to hear from the candidates? As a Jewish American, I feel very safe in France... I&amp;#x27;ve been to Israel twice, and to me, feeling safe while traveling abroad is extremely important. I&amp;#x27;m also a strong supporter of the safety and security of Israel. I believe that the United States should avoid interfering with other countries&amp;#x27; business except when there are blatant human rights violations, but I do want to know that the President will stand up for Israel when needed. What&amp;#x27;s the one question you&amp;#x27;d ask the candidates at tonight&amp;#x27;s debate if you could? For a year now, there have been arguments as to whether or not Iran has the nuclear capability and the willpower to create a bomb to attack Israel. At what point will the United States use military intervention to stop Iran&amp;#x27;s progress if the sanctions fail? Have you cast your absentee ballot yet? Yes! Big thanks Alex (my freshman year college roommate, doing amazing things at the Lebanon Daily Star!), Krystin, Melissa, and Stephanie for chatting big issues with us. Are you watching the final presidential debate on foreign policy? What&amp;#x27;s your hot-button issue? Did any of the women abroad share the same main concerns as you, or would you ask the candidates about a different issue--perhaps China, Russia, or something else? And you KNOW we&amp;#x27;re going to have a wrap-up here around midnight, so come on back. Photos Courtesy of Interviewees"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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