Chapter 20: Objectives/Notes

Compare the general attitudes of liberals and conservatives toward defense expenditures and domestic policy expenditures.

1. Conservatives oppose deep cuts in defense spending, pointing out that many nations retain potent military capability and insisting that America needs to maintain its high state of readiness. 2. Liberals maintain that the Pentagon wastes money and that the United States buys too many guns and too little butter.

Ascertain how the president and Congress share constitutional authority over foreign and defense policy.

See Objectives 4 & 5: 1. President = Chief Diplomat and Commander-in-Chief. 2. Congress = Approves treaties; Declares war; Provides funding.

Contrast the policy of détente with prior policies such as containment and brinkmanship.

1. Containment: Opposing the spread of communism with active resistance using military, diplomatic and economic tools. 2. Brinksmanship: Policy in which the United States was to be prepared to use nuclear weapons in order to deter the Soviet Union and Communist China from taking aggressive action. 3. Detente: Sought a relaxation of tensions between the superpowers, coupled with firm guarantees of mutual security. Foreign policy battles were to be waged with diplomatic, economic, and propaganda weapons; the threat of force was downplayed.

Understand how the instruments of foreign policy differ from those of domestic policy.

1. Foreign policies depend ultimately on three types of tools: military, economic, and diplomatic. 2. Among the oldest instruments of foreign policy are war and the threat of war. The United States has often used force to influence actions in other countries. 3. Today, economic instruments are becoming weapons almost as potent as those of war. (a) The control of oil can be as important as the control of guns. (b) Trade regulations, tariff policies, and monetary policies are among the economic instruments of foreign policy. 4. Diplomacy is the quietest instrument of foreign policy. (a) Sometimes national leaders meet in summit talks. (b) More often, less prominent negotiators work out treaties handling all kinds of national contracts.

Briefly outline American diplomatic history from the period of isolationism to contemporary involvement in international relations.

1. Isolationism: Pre-WWI policy to not get involved in European affairs. 2. Monroe Doctrine: Warned European nations to stay out of Latin America. 3. Pearl Harbor: End of isolationism; Entered WWII. 4. Post WWII: Marshall Plan to rebuild Europe in order prevent communism in Europe. 5. NATO: Military alliance with Western Europe to combat communism. 6. Truman Doctrine/Containment: Oppose the spread of communism. 7. Berlin Blockade: Airlifting supplies into W. Berlin. 8. Korean War: Contain communism. 9. Cold War: US vs. Soviet Union. 10. Vietnam War: Prevent spread of communism.

Determine how multinational corporations, groups, and individuals operate as actors in international relations.

1. Multinational corporations (MNCs), which are sometimes more powerful (and often much wealthier) than the governments under which they operate. 2. Groups such as churches and labor unions have long had international interests and activities. (a) Environmental and wildlife groups such as Greenpeace have proliferated, as have groups interested in protecting human rights, such as Amnesty International. (b) Some groups are committed to the overthrow of particular governments and operate as terrorists around the world. 3. Individuals are also international actors. (a) The recent explosion of tourism affects the international economic system. (b) Growing numbers of students are going to and coming from other nations; they are carriers of ideas and ideologies. (c) Immigrants and refugees place new demands on public services.

Identify the primary policymakers involved in foreign policy decision making.

1. President: Chief Diplomat (negotiates treaties). 2. Secretary of State: Key presidential advisor on foreign policy. 3. Dept. of State's Foreign Service: Diplomats to foreign countries. 4.. Congress: Approves treaties.

Delineate the major institutions of the U.S. national security establishment.

1. President: Commander-in-Chief (deploys troops abroad). 2. Secretary of Defense: Key presidential advisor on military matters. 3. Joint Chiefs of Staff: Commanding officers from each of the military branches. 4. National Security Council: Coordinates American foreign military policy. 5. Central Intelligence Agency: Collects and analyzes data (spies on foreign countries). 6. Congress: Declares war; Provides funding for military and other activities.

Evaluate the roles that democracy and the scope of government play in the development of foreign policy and international relations.

1. Role of Democracy. A. Americans are usually more interested in domestic policy than foreign policy. B. Public opinion plays an important part in American foreign and defense policy; as with other issues, policymakers are reluctant to make unpopular decisions. C. The system of separation of powers plays a crucial role in foreign as well as domestic policy: the president does not act alone; Congress has a central role in matters of international relations. D. Pluralism is important to the development of American international economic policy: agencies and members of Congress—as well as their constituents—each pursue their own policy goals; even foreign governments hire lobbying firms. 2. Scope of Government. A. America's global connections as a superpower have many implications for how active the national government is in the realm of foreign policy and national defense. B. Treaty obligations, the nation's economic interests in an interdependent global economy, and other questions on the global agenda guarantee that the national government will be active in international relations. C. As the United States remains a superpower and continues to have interests to defend around the world, the scope of American government in foreign and defense policy will be substantial.

Summarize how domestic political concerns, budgetary limitations, and ideology all have a role in influencing decisions regarding the structure of defense policy.

1. Some conservatives favor cutting defense spending in order to decrease the budget deficit. 2. Some liberals want to allocate the funds to expanded domestic programs. 3. Changing spending patterns is not easy: when assembly lines at weapons plants close down, people lose their jobs; these programs become political footballs. 4. Defense spending is decreasing, and the size of the armed forces is also being reduced.

Outline the major agreements negotiated by the United States and other nations on arms limitations and nuclear reduction.

1. Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT): These talks represented an effort by the United States and the Soviet Union to agree to scale down their nuclear capabilities, with each power maintaining sufficient nuclear weapons to deter a surprise attack by the other.

List the major international and regional organizations and describe their roles in the realm of international relations.

1. The United Nations (UN) (a) Its members agree to renounce war and respect certain human and economic freedoms. (b) In addition to its peacekeeping function, the UN runs a number of programs focused on economic development and health, education, and welfare concerns. 2. The International Monetary Fund helps regulate the world of international finance. 4. The International Postal Union helps get the mail from one country to another. 5. Regional Organizations (a) The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was created in 1949; its members (the United States, Canada, most Western European nations, and Turkey) agreed to combine military forces and to treat a war against one as a war against all. (b) The European Union (EU), often called the Common Market, is an economic alliance of the major Western European nations; the EU coordinates monetary, trade, immigration, and labor policies.

Explain why the Middle East is such an important component of American foreign policy.

Due to economic pressures, the US must ensure the free-flow of oil from the Middle East region.