Contenders argue about Afghanistan, Iran, torture

? Unsparing in their criticism of President Barack Obama, Republican presidential hopefuls disagreed in campaign debate Saturday night about the right course in Afghanistan, the use of waterboarding and the wisdom of a pre-emptive military strike to prevent Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon.

“If we re-elect Barack Obama, Iran will have a nuclear weapon. And if you elect Mitt Romney, Iran will not have a nuclear weapon,” vowed the former Massachusetts governor.

On waterboarding, Herman Cain and Rep. Michele Bachmann both said they would reinstate the technique designed to simulate drowning. Cain went one step further, adding that he would leave it up to military leaders — rather than their civilian superiors — to decide what forms of interrogation amount to torture, which he said he opposes.

As for the war in Afghanistan, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman and Rep. Ron Paul of Texas both said it was time for U.S. troops to come home after a combat mission of 10 years duration.

While the Republicans were talking about foreign policy, Obama was on the world stage, as America’s diplomat in chief.

After meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in Hawaii, he said the two men intend to “shape a common response” to new allegations that Iran has been covertly trying to build a nuclear bomb. The issue is fraught because the regime in Tehran is harshly anti-Israel, a nation the United States has pledged to defend.

If the presidential trip gave the Republicans pause, they didn’t show it in a 90-minute debate.

“There are a number of ways to be smart about Iran, and a few ways to be stupid. The administration skipped all the ways to be smart,” said former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

The debate occurred less than two months before the formal selection of national convention delegates begins on Jan. 3 in the Iowa caucuses, with the race remarkably unsettled.

Romney has been at or near the top of the public opinion polls for months, while a succession of rivals vying to emerge as his principal challenger has risen and fallen in turn.

The latest soundings show Cain the current leader in that sweepstakes, although Gingrich has risen significantly in national polls in recent weeks as Perry has fallen back.