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Chapter 19

Foreign and
Military Policy

1. Is American foreign policy set by


public opinion or elite views?
2. If only Congress can declare war, why
has the president become so
powerful in military affairs?
3. Should our foreign policy be based on
American interests or some
conception of human rights?

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Learning Objectives

WHO GOVERNS?
1. Is American foreign policy set by public wishes
or elite views?
2. If only Congress can declare war, why has the
president become so powerful in military affairs?

TO WHAT ENDS?
1. Why do we go to war against some
dictatorships and not others?
2. Should our foreign policy be based on American
interests or some conception of human rights?

Copyright 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

Introduction

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In May 2011 Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. special forces
in the house behind this wall, located in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

Majoritarian Politics
President is dominant figure
Public opinion usually supports president
Examples: war, peace, global diplomacy

Interest group/client politics


Entrepreneurial politics

Copyright 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

Kinds of Foreign Policy

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Kinds of Foreign Policy

Presidential Box Score


International diplomacy and use of
American troops
Historical comparisons suggest presidents
ability to act decisively often appears
modest

Copyright 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

The Constitutional and Legal


Context

Evaluating the Power of the President


Checks on Presidential Power
Limitations on the Presidents Ability to
Give Military or Economic Aid to Other
Countries
The War Powers Act
Intelligence Oversight

Copyright 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

The Constitutional and Legal


Context

Following the
attack on Pearl
Harbor, President
Roosevelt ordered
all Japanese
Americans living
on the West Coast
be interned in
prison camps.

Copyright 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

Presidential Power:
Extraordinary Measures

Expansion after WWII


Rivalries within executive branch
intensify rivalries between that branch
and Congress
Interests of various organizations affect
the positions they take

Copyright 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

The Machinery of
Foreign Policy

10

World War II
Vietnam
September 11, 2001
Backing the President
Mass versus Elite Opinion

Copyright 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

Foreign Policy and


Public Opinion

11

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Popular Reactions to
Foreign Policy Crises

12

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Publics View of America as


World Leader

13

How a Worldview Shapes Foreign Policy


Four Worldviews:
Isolationism
Containment
Disengagement
Human rights

A meeting that named an era: In Munich in


1938, British prime minister Neville
Chamberlain attempted to appease the
territorial ambitions of Hitler. Chamberlains
failure brought World War II closer.

Copyright 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

Cleavages among Foreign


Policy Elites

14

Political Polarization
Foreign Policy Goals

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Cleavages among Foreign


Policy Elites

15

Two views of role of the military


Majoritarian
Client

Military-industrial complex
War in Iraq

Copyright 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

The Use of Military Force

16

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U.S. Military Intervention in the Middle


East

17

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U.S. Military Intervention in Central


America and the Caribbean Since
1950

18

Total Spending
Escalation after 1950
Reflects changes in public opinion

What Do We Get with Our Money?


Personnel
Big-Ticket Items
Readiness

Copyright 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

The Defense Budget

19

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Trends in Military Spending


(outlays in constant dollars)

20

Joint Chiefs of Staff


The Services
The Chain of Command
President Commander-in-Chief
Secretary of Defense

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The Structure of Defense


Decision Making

21

Bipolar world
Unipolar world
Doctrine of preemption

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The New Problem of Terrorism

22

Iraq and Afghanistan

A U.S. Marine goes on


patrol in Afghanistan.

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The New Problem of Terrorism

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Afghanistan after Bin laden

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Click picture to play video

Taking a closer look:


1. What impact has the death of bin Laden
had on U.S. involvement in Afghanistan?
2. Are average Americans more interested in
domestic or foreign policy issues? Why?
3. Who benefits from the U.S. presence in
Afghanistan?
4. Why does the U.S. have a civilian
commander-in-chief?

Copyright 2015 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

Afghanistan after Bin laden

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