Transcript Chapter 18 - TeacherWeb

Chapter 18: Foreign Policy
and National Defense
 Foreign
policy — especially policy concerning wars
or crises — has traditionally been different from
domestic policy.
– Presidents and others at the governmental level of analysis
have often played a much more important part than they do
domestically.
– They have had an unusual degree of autonomy in foreign
policy.
– The ordinary political factors have often been set aside in
favor of considerations of the national interest.
The Role of Public Opinion
in Foreign Affairs.
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Complexity and remoteness of international matters
Unpredictability of other countries’ actions
The need for speed, unity, and secrecy
Government policy can sometimes shape public opinion
rather than be shaped by it.
The American public plays a larger role in the making of
foreign policy than is often apparent, and its influence
appears to be increasing.
The United States As a Superpower:
Structure and History

U.S. economic and military power
– Economic power
– Military power
– Other countries’ armed forces

The superpower status of the United States is a
crucial structural fact for understanding
international relations and American foreign
policy.
The Growth of U.S. Power
 The
United States achieved dominance of
the world economy in the decades following
World War II.
 U.S. foreign policy became entangled in
Cold War rivalry with the Soviet Union.
The Cold War with the Soviet
Union
 Beginnings
of the Cold War
– Containment
– Truman Doctrine (1947)
– Marshall Plan
– The Federal Republic of Germany was
established.
– Various communist-dominated regimes were
set up in Eastern Europe.
– Multilateral military alliances were formed on
both sides.
– Both the United States and the Soviets had
nuclear capability.
The Korean War
 The
first big armed struggle of the Cold
War broke out in Korea.
 It pitted the United States and South Korea,
fighting under terms of a UN resolution,
against North Korea and later China.
 Consequences of the Korean War
 Stalemate
– The Korean War ended in 1953.
– Most of the world divided into two opposing
camps that had fairly fixed boundaries and a
reasonably stable balance of power.
– Both sides attained a sort of nuclear parity.
– Mutually assured destruction (MAD) was
eventually seen as a source of stability and a
basis for arms control agreements.
Vietnam and Détente
The Vietnam War was a major setback for
American foreign policy.
 The war’s costs in money, casualties, and social
disruption discouraged intervention abroad for a
period of time.
 Nervousness about military involvement in the
1990s stemmed from memories of the Vietnam
War and its effects.
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 The
end of the Cold War and the collapse of
the Soviet Union: Independence for Eastern
Europe
– International affairs have been transformed
since 1989 (when the Bush administration took
office).
– Collapse of the Soviet empire
The Structural Bases of American
Superpower Status
 Economic
Power
 Military Power
 Soft Power
Problems of the Post Cold War
World
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New security issues in the post cold war era
The United States faced a completely changed world in the
1990s, but many questions about national security and
international relations remained.
– Russia and the former Soviet Union
– Eastern Europe
– Western Europe
– Japan, China, and the Pacific
– The developing world
 Economic
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and social dilemmas
International trade
Foreign aid and arms sales
The global environment
The drug trade
Immigration
Who Makes Foreign Policy?
– The President and the executive branch are the primary
governmental decision makers concerning most foreign
policy issues.
– Congress is often involved in decisions about foreign
trade and aid, military bases and contracts, and other
matters that impact on their constituents’ interests.
– People and institutions in the political sphere affect
what both Congress and the executive branch do.
– Different types of foreign policy are made in very
different ways.
 The
executive branch
– National Security Council (NSC)
– Department of State (located in Foggy Bottom,
a reclaimed marsh located close to the Potomac
River)
– The Department of Defense (DOD)
– Intelligence agencies
 Congress
– Congress generally plays a less-active role in
foreign policy than in domestic policy.
– The Constitution grants Congress certain
powers relative to foreign policy, but they have
become less important with the transformation
of executive authority.
– Appropriating money for defense and foreign
policy
 Public
opinion and the mass media
– Public opinion has substantial effects on policymaking.
– The executive branch has considerable leeway; public
opinion seldom demands that particular actions be
taken in setting foreign policy.
– The mass media have tended to convey the
government’s point of view to the public in the arena of
foreign policy.
 Corporations
and interest groups
– There is considerable disagreement over the
role of corporations and interest groups in
establishing American foreign policy.
– U.S. foreign policy is important to American
businesses.
– Certain ethnic groups sometimes influence U.S.
foreign policy.
– Although public opinion is often taken into
account, the centralization of decisions in the
executive branch means that popular
participation is limited.
– Secrecy means that the public often does not
know what the government is doing, and
therefore cannot hold it accountable.
– Government control of information means that
the public can sometimes be manipulated.
 Democratic
control of foreign policy
may increase as more and more
Americans become aware of
international affairs, insist on knowing
what their government is doing, and
demand government responsiveness to
the popular will.