The Democrats' US presidential candidate, Mr John Kerry, would never go to war unless there was an imminent threat against the US and he would do everything to avoid it, Ms Rosemary O'Neill, said in Dublin last night.
Ms O'Neill, who was with the US state department for 37 years and was more recently adviser to Mr Richard Haass on Northern Ireland, is now working with former state department officials to promote the election of Mr Kerry.
She is the daughter of the late Senator Tip O'Neill, the former Speaker of the US House of Representatives.
Ms O'Neill said one of the defining moments for the US was 9/11. They all remembered George Bush standing in a pile of rubble, No-one was a Democrat, no-one was a Republican, they were all American.
The Irish people, businesses and Government, closed down for a single day in respect. Who could forget the solidarity.
"But I believe the administration took that moment and mandate and they leveraged it, and pushed forward a radical and extremist agenda," she said.
President Bush had a lot of international support in his war against terrorists including the war against Osama bin-Laden. She would have liked him to pursue bin-Laden but instead he had to go into Iraq.
"John Kerry will not mislead Americans about war, he'll tell it to them straight," she said.
John Kerry had said he would not accept in any form or shape a terrorist attack against the US.
"At the same time, he will never go to war unless there is an imminent threat. He will do everything he can to avoid war. He will never go to war without a plan to win the peace," Ms O'Neill said.
"If we're in the war against terrorism and against the WMD, we need to fight it smart, not rely only on military weapons.
"There are many, many other weapons and tools at our disposal, not the least of which are the tools of diplomacy, tools of economic incentives and disincentives and most importantly the tools of conveying what our ideals are all about," she said.
"We need to be respected and not just feared. We need to build strong alliances and this son of a diplomat will do just that," she said.
Urging all US citizens to vote, she said: "I believe it is the most important election of my life-time." She added that the one thing she had learned on this trip was that the election was not just important for Americans but also for everyone else.
The event was organised by Democrats Abroad Ireland, which is dedicated to helping all US citizens living outside of the US to vote in November.