US Foreign Policy in Action: An Innovative Teaching Text

U.S. foreign policy has shaped today’s world in profound ways. We might not agree with White House reasoning over the decades, but would we have behaved differently had we held the levers of power? This innovative teaching text views the U.S. foreign policy decision–making process through the lens of political debate and exchange. As well as being a sound introduction to the historical developments and theories of U.S. foreign policy, it provides students with creative learning exercises that engage them in the cut–and–thrust politics of foreign policy process and provides them with an experiential lesson in the complexities of international relations. The book is designed to bring the politics of foreign policy to life – by encouraging critical reflection of contending perspectives in political debates, detailing relevant historical information, and providing analytical exercise in resolving foreign policy dilemmas. In addition to a detailed narrative, all chapters include discussion questions, document templates, worksheets, suggested readings, and web resources for easy implementation of the exercises.

List of Photos ix List of Figures xi List of Maps xii List of Tables xiii Preface and Acknowledgments xiv 1 Introduction: United States Foreign Policy in Action 1 Historical Foundations 3 Major Actors in the Foreign Policy Process 7 Pedagogical Approach: How to Use This Book 9 Key Features 10 Overview of the Book 11 2 The History of US Foreign Policy 14 Revolutionary Values 15 The Struggle to Defi ne the New Nation 18 Manifest Destiny? 22 The Civil War 24 Rise to Globalism 26 The “American Century” and World Wars 29 Discussion Questions 35 3 Foreign Policy in the Cold War and Post–Cold War Era 38 Introduction 39 The Cold War 40 The Truman Doctrine 42 Korea and Vietnam 45 Redefining Values and Interests? 47 The End of the Cold War 55 Engagement and Enlargement 58 Interests versus Values? The War on Terrorism 59 Discussion Questions 64 4 Key Government Institutions: The President, Congress, and the Courts 68 Section I: Constitutional Authority and the “Invitation to Struggle” 69 The President and the Executive Branch 71 Presidential Influence 72 Instruments of Presidential Power 83 Congress: The Legislative Branch 84 The Courts: The Judicial Branch 95 Conclusion 98 Discussion Questions 99 Section II: Structured Debate: Leadership in Action and the War on Terrorism 100 Guidelines and Rules of Procedure 100 Debate: Executive Dominance and the War on Terrorism 101 Background: The War on Terrorism 101 Framing the Debate: Values and Interests 103 Position 1: YES, The President Should Have Greater Authority in the War on Terrorism 103 Additional Resources 105 Position 2: NO, The President Should Not Have More Foreign Policy Authority 106 Additional Resources 111 5 Bureaucracies: Unelected Actors in the Foreign Policy Process 116 Section I: Bureaucracies and Foreign Policy 117 Key Characteristics of Bureaucracies 117 The Theory of Bureaucratic Politics 119 The Department of Defense 122 The Department of State 129 Intelligence Bureaucracies 137 Discussion Questions 144 Section II: National Security Council Simulation: Bureaucratic Politics in Action 145 Exercise Scenario: Proliferation Threats 147 Iranian Nuclear Ambitions 148 Appendices: Templates and Role Assignments 155 Additional Resources 160 6 Interest Groups and Political Parties 163 Section I: The Power of Unelected Actors 164 Interest Groups 164 What Do You Want? How to Lobby Effectively 168 Types of Interest Groups 171 Political Parties 179 Conclusion: Are All Politics “Local”? 185 Discussion Questions 185 Section II: Interest Groups in Action: Case–Based Learning 186 Pedagogical Approach 186 Environmental Policy: The United States, Interest Groups, and Climate Change 186 A Change of Climate? 193 Legislative Showdown 197 Case Discussion Questions 200 7 Public Opinion and the Media 204 Section I: Reaching the Masses? Public Opinion and the Media 205 Public Opinion 205 Public Attitudes and Foreign Policy: A Direct Line? 214 Media and Foreign Policy 216 The Functions of Media 217 Contemporary Trends in Media Coverage 221 Discussion Questions 224 Section II: Public Opinion and the Media in Action: Problem–Based Cooperative Learning 226 Research Project 1: Alternative News Media and Foreign Policy: Educating the Public? 226 Research Project 2: The Media and National Security: Is There a Public “Right to Know”? 230 8 Grand Strategy: Then and Now 243 Section I: What is Grand Strategy? 244 Alternative Grand Strategy Frames for US Foreign Policy Positions 246 Hegemony/Unilateralism 247 Multilateralism 251 Isolationism/Parochialism 255 Formulating Grand Strategy in the Post–9/11 World 258 Discussion Questions 260 Section II: Structured Debate: A New Grand Strategy for the Twenty–First Century? 262 Guidelines and Rules of Procedure 262 Framing the Debate 263 Position 1: YES, A New Foreign Policy Should be Strongly Multilateral – Vital Interests are Global 263 What Does Multilateralism Mean for Foreign Policy? 265 Transnational Issues and Multilateral Solutions 265 Additional Resources 270 Position 2: NO, A New Foreign Policy Should be Isolationist/Parochial – Vital Interests are Domestic 270 “It’s the Economy, Stupid” 271 What Does Parochialism Mean for US Foreign Policy? 272 The War on Terror and US Parochialism 274 A Sustainable Foreign Policy Agenda? 276 Additional Resources 278 9 Contemporary Foreign Policy Analysis 282 Fundamental Dynamics of Foreign Policy 283 Obama Foreign Policy 285 The Arab Spring Meets Liberal Engagement 288 Domestic Political Constraints 289 Foreign Policy Continuity versus Change 293 What Can You Do? 295 Bibliography 298 Index 324

Jeffrey S. Lantis is Professor of Political Science at The College of Wooster, USA. He teaches courses on U.S. foreign policy, international security, comparative foreign policy, and war and peace on film. A former Fulbright Senior Scholar at the Australian National University, Lantis is author of The Life and Death of International Treaties (2009), and co–editor of Foreign Policy in Comparative Perspective: Domestic and International Influences on State Behavior (2012). He is past president of the Active Learning in International Affairs Section of the International Studies Association (ISA), and has directed numerous workshops on active learning approaches. In 2010, he was co–recipient of the Deborah J. Gerner Innovative Teaching Award in International Studies, the highest teaching award bestowed by the ISA.