CHAPTER 16
American Foreign Policy
Learning Objectives
 Discuss the formal powers of Congress and
the president to conduct foreign policy under
the Constitution
 Trace the history of U.S. foreign policy from
American independence to the present
 Compare different approaches to foreign
policy, including isolationism, pacifism, and
expansionism
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Learning Objectives
 Describe America’s approach to the Cold War,
including theories of containment
 Discuss current foreign policy in the Middle
East, including the ongoing war on terrorism
 Explain how foreign and military policy is
conducted by the president, the State
Department, the National Security Council,
and various intelligence agencies
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Learning Objectives
 Describe how members of Congress, interest
groups, and public opinion influence foreign
policy
 Define the preemption doctrine and how it
has been used to justify aggressive military
actions in the Middle East
 Evaluate the state of Russian–U.S. relations,
the nature of U.S. foreign aid, and the role of
the United Nations
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The Constitutional Framework
of American Foreign Policy
 Early forms of foreign policy
 U.S. treaties with foreign nations
 Control shifted from Congress to the president
 U.S. ascended to superpower status
 Led to increased involvement in world affairs
 Presidency well-suited to respond to demands
 Bully pulpit
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Constitutional Framework
of American Foreign Policy
 Wildavsky’s two presidencies theory
 Powerful presidency in foreign affairs
 Limited presidency in domestic sphere
 War Powers Resolution
 Congressional attempt to limit the president
 Ignored/evaded by every president since Nixon
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 Isolationist Tradition and Monroe Doctrine
 Franco-American alliance helped the colonies
 Newly formed U.S. set aside alliance with France
 Declared neutrality when England and France went
to war
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 Early U.S. foreign policy marked by
isolationism
 Opposition to
 Interventions in distant wars (outside the Western
hemisphere)
 Involvement in permanent military alliances
 Distinguished from pacifism
 Refusal to sanction any military conflict and oppose all
war making
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 Monroe Doctrine
 U.S. considers any new European colonization
efforts on the U.S. side of the Atlantic Ocean as an
act of war
 Rise of European imperialism
 U.S. begins to invoke Monroe Doctrine starting in 1895
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 Expansionism and Birth of a Superpower
 Expansionism
 Expanding territory or economic influence
 Systematic effort to pursue manifest destiny
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 1803: Louisiana Territory purchase
 1817–1819: Annexed Florida after conquering
Spanish holdings there
 1840s: Established the northeastern boundary
of Maine and of the Oregon territory
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 1845: Annexed the Republic of Texas
 1846–1848: Gained all of California, Nevada,
and Utah and parts of Arizona, New Mexico,
Colorado, and Wyoming
 1890s: Annexed Hawaii
 1898–1902: Philippine Islands
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 World War I
 Allies owed U.S. $11 billion at end of war
 Drafted the Treaty of Versailles
 System of reparations, developed League of Nations
 World War II
 U.S. involvement important factor in final outcome
 United Nations (UN) established
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 Foreign policy switch to internationalism
 Marshall Plan
 $13 billion in loans to Western European countries
following World War II
 Humanitarian policy or strategic purpose?
 Cold War
 Conflict over ideological differences
 U.S. and the Soviet Union
 Dissolution of Soviet Union in 1991
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO)
 Bound U.S. to military
defense of Western
Europe
 Warsaw Pact
 Soviet Union and its
Eastern European
neighbors
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 Truman Doctrine
 Gave resources to noncommunist governments that
were vital to U.S.
 Containment
 Resisting efforts to expand Communist influence
 Domino theory
 Communist takeovers of Southeast Asian countries
would cause takeovers of other nations as well
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 Vietnam War
 American military failure
 Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI)
 Formulated by Ronald Reagan
 Lasers to shoot down Soviet nuclear missiles
 End of Cold War
 Leadership of Gorbachev eased tensions
 U.S. focused foreign policy on a new world order
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 New World Order and New World Disorder
 New World Order
 Nations together secure peace, security, freedom, and the
rule of law
 Presence of China
 Still a Communist nation
 Crucial market for U.S. goods/products
 U.S. economy intertwined with global economy
 Economic concerns interfere with other interests
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 U.S. Government Confronts the Middle East
 Greatest threats to U.S. security in the 21st century
 Middle East
 North Korea
 Middle East countries distrust the U.S. because
 U.S. supports Israel
 Continued presence of U.S. military in the Middle East
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 1990: Iraq invasion of Kuwait
 First Bush administration
 Militarily expel Hussein’s army in early 1991
 September 11, 2001
 Focused U.S. foreign policy toward war on terrorism
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The Roots of
American Foreign Policy
 After the September 11th Attacks
 Short-lived war in Afghanistan to expel Al Qaeda
 Focus on Saddam Hussein’s government in Iraq
 US military forces liberated country of previous government
 Aftermath proven highly problematic
 Obama’s 18-month withdrawal window of combat
forces deployed to Iraq
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The Structure of
American Foreign Policymaking
 Executive Branch Role
 Presidential dominance of foreign policy
 Allows government to act immediately
 A lot of power vested in one individual
 Department of State
 Headed by the secretary of state
 Primary responsibility for foreign policy programs
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The Structure of
American Foreign Policymaking
 Department of Defense
 Manages the nation’s military
 Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS)
 Chief officers of the four branches of the armed forces
 National Security Council
 Presidential advisory body
 Coordinates information affecting national security
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The Structure of
American Foreign Policymaking
 Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
 Governmental divisions responsible for U.S.
security
 Formulates response/recovery during time of threat
 Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
 Handles world intelligence information affecting
national security
 Disseminates propaganda
 Engages in overt or covert activities
 Struggles to define role in post-Cold War era
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The Structure of
American Foreign Policymaking
 Other Foreign Policy Actors and Interests
 Congress
 Foreign Relations committees
 Private Citizens
 Private Sector Interest Groups
 Military-industrial complex
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The Structure of
American Foreign Policymaking
 American Foreign Policy and Public Opinion
 Public opinion is a concern for foreign policymaking
 Public attitudes defy easy analysis
 Support for war weakens after enemy is defeated
 Mueller’s four propositions about public opinion on
foreign policy
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Failing to Win Over the Public
in Afghanistan
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Foreign Policy Dilemmas
for the Twenty-first Century
 Is the preemption doctrine justifiable?
 Right of the U.S. military to use advance strikes to
stop rogue states from developing weapons of
mass destruction
 Cultivating Relations with the New Russian
Federation
 What Role Does Foreign Aid Play in the New
International Order?
 Does the United Nations Still Serve an
Important Function?
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President Obama at the UN
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