Foreign Policy and Democracy

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Chapter 18
Foreign Policy and Democracy
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Foreign Policy and Democracy
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The Nature of Foreign Policy

• Foreign policy programs and policies that
  determine Americas relations with other nations
  and foreign entities
• American foreign policy arenas
• Diplomacy
• Military and security policy
• International human rights policy
• Economic policy

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The Nature of Foreign Policy
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Goals of Foreign Policy

• Three main goals of U.S. foreign policy
• Security
• Economic prosperity
• Creation of a better world

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Security
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Goals of Foreign Policy

• Security
• Traditionally concerned with dangers posed by
  hostile foreign nations
• Military and regime threats at home and abroad
• Today, threats posed by nonstate actors
• Organized groups that are not nation-states
• Such groups attempt to play a role in the
  international system via rogue means

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Goals of Foreign Policy

• Physical and online security
• Protection from attacks on U.S. citizens and
  property, both domestic and abroad
• Security extends beyond physical borders,
  military installations, and/or embassies.
• Technology leads to new concerns about
  intelligence hacks, protecting power grids,
  massive fraud/theft on public.

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Goals of Foreign Policy

• Isolationism desire to avoid involvement in the
  affairs of other nations
• Most of nineteenth century isolationism was
  dominant U.S. foreign policy.
• Much easier in era when United States was not yet
  a military or economic world power
• Technology (aircraft, communications, banking)
  era also made isolationism viable.

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Goals of Foreign Policy

• World War II ended isolationism.
• Isolation was replaced with deterrence.
• Deterrence develop and maintain military
  strength as means of discouraging attack
• So strong that no enemy dares engage
• Point of military buildup is so that weapons are
  never actually used
• Stockpiling weapons for invasion is NOT a
  deterrence strategy.

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Goals of Foreign Policy

• Preventive war (preemption) policy of striking
  first when a nation fears that a foreign foe is
  planning hostile action
• Appeasement effort to forestall war by giving in
  to the demands of a hostile power

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Goals of Foreign Policy

• The Cold War (1940s1990s)
• After WWII, the U.S. and USSR became the worlds
  two superpowers.
• Each was capable of destroying the world many
  times over with their nuclear arsenals.
• Never fought one another directly (a hot war)
• Competed for the allegiances of other countries
• Nations all over the globe allied themselves with
  the United States or USSR (democracy vs.
  communism).

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Goals of Foreign Policy

• Deterrence assumes certainty and rationality.
• Works for countries (except rogue states) but not
  for nonstate actors
• USSR and U.S. both feared global nuclear war.
  Neither would directly attack the other.
• Terrorist groups not fearful of losing life among
  their own group members/followers

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Goals of Foreign Policy

• U.S. international economic policies promote
  prosperity by
• Expanding domestic employment
• Ex Toyota factories in six U.S. states
• Maintaining access to foreign natural resources
  at favorable costs
• Promoting foreign investment in the United States
• Lowering prices that citizens pay for goods and
  services

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Goals of Foreign Policy

• Trade policy
• The United States wants to promote exports and
  discourage imports.
• Tariffs taxes on imports
• Countries that reciprocate on low tariffs are
  granted most favored nation status.

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U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services
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The United States and the World Trade Organization
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Goals of Foreign Policy

• World trade
• North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
  eliminated tariffs on imports between America,
  Canada, and Mexico
• World Trade Organization (WTO) promotes free
  trade and provides a dispute mechanism for members

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Goals of Foreign Policy

• International humanitarian policies
• International environmental policies
• International human rights policies
• International peacekeeping
• These policies can range in priority depending on
  the other security and trade issues associated
  with a given nation.

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Goals of Foreign Policy
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Goals of Foreign Policy

• The United States has been on the forefront of
  human rights issues.
• U.S. constitutional protections against
  discrimination based on race, gender, political
  beliefs and religion
• Other nations often look to America to take
  leadership on human rights issues, even if only
  in public statements.
• Economic interest can take priority though.

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Goals of Foreign Policy

• Humanitarian efforts include peacekeeping.
• Sending troops to keep other nations from
  fighting one another
• Efforts to protect civilians from starvation,
  homelessness, and abuse
• Frequently joined by other nations in these
  efforts
• Humanitarian relief during natural disasters
  (funds, military, medical, logistical support)

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Who Makes American Foreign Policy?

• President dominates foreign policy matters
• Can directly set foreign policy strategies
• Ambassador and military appointments
• Relationships with foreign heads of state
• Congress has a role, but less influential
• Courts, interest groups, public opinion also play
  a role
• Highly charged issues like Iraq War

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Who Makes American Foreign Policy?

• Presidents can be tremendously influential.
• Head of state
• Ability to initiate treaties and agreements
• Place senior officials who oversee bureaucracy
• Have enormous resources available for
  policymaking
• Constitutional authorities uniquely position the
  president for foreign policy leadership.

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Principal Foreign Policy Provisions of the
Constitution
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Who Makes American Foreign Policy?

• Major governmental players in foreign policy
• Secretaries of State, Defense, and Treasury
• Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS)
• Director of CIA
• Director of National Security Council (NSC)
• President appoints all of these positions.
• Hence, foreign policy can easily reflect a
  presidents agenda (at least more readily than
  domestic policy).

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Who Makes American Foreign Policy?

• Constitution Congress has the power to declare
  war.
• Has only done so five times War of 1812, Mexican
  War (1846), Spanish American War (1898), WW I
  (1917), WW II (1941)
• Congress controls funding for war.
• Rarely refuses to fund military actions the
  president has initiated.
• Politically very unpopular to vote against funds
  associated with American military troops at war

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U.S. Military Expenditure Since 2001
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Who Makes American Foreign Policy?

• Interest groups
• Economic interest groups
• National origin groups
• Example Jewish Americans with respect to Israel
  Cuban Americans
• Human rights groups
• Media
• Negative media can lead to negative pubic opinion

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Who Makes American Foreign Policy?

• In times of foreign crisis
• The presidency is at its strongest.
• Congress not designed to act quickly
• Media and public look to singular voice, leader
  on crisis matters
• The circle of influence is very constrained.
• Foreign actors can limit options open to U.S.
  policy makers.

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Instruments of Modern American Foreign Policy

• Diplomacy the representation of a government to
  other foreign governments
• American civilian jobs with the foreign service
  (State Department) require extensive skill sets,
  and process is very selective
• United Nations comprised of 192 countries, each
  of which gets one vote

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Instruments of Modern American Foreign Policy
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Instruments of Modern American Foreign Policy

• Economic aid
• America provides 30b a year to other countries
• Carrot (positive incentive, benefits) to get
  countries to take desired actions that U.S.
  prefers
• Economic sanctions
• Stick (negative incentive, penalties) to get
  countries to take desired actions that U.S.
  prefers
• Trade embargoes, bans on investment, bans on
  travel, freezing of assets held in banks

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Instruments of Modern American Foreign Policy

• Bank for reconstruction and development (World
  Bank)
• Mechanism for governments to lend money to one
  another in ways that private-sector markets could
  not
• International Monetary Fund (IMF)
• Helps stressed nations borrow short-term funds

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Who Serves in the U.S. Military?
CHAPTER 18
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Gender
SOURCES Department of Defense, Population
Representation in the Military Services, 2010.
U.S. Census, 2010.
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Race / Ethnicity
SOURCES Department of Defense, Population
Representation in the Military Services, 2010.
U.S. Census, 2010.
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Education
New enlistees, 2010
SOURCES Department of Defense, Population
Representation in the Military Services, 2010.
U.S. Census, 2010.
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Geographic Origin
SOURCES Department of Defense, Population
Representation in the Military Services, 2010.
U.S. Census, 2010.
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Collective Security
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Instruments of Modern American Foreign Policy

• Collective security
• OAS, NATO, ANZUS, SATO
• An armed attack against any of its members shall
  be considered as an attack against all
• Arbitration agreement negotiated by neutral
  third party
• Soft power as opposed to the military
• Virtually all international contracts have
  arbitration.

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Instruments of Modern American Foreign Policy
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Public Opinion Poll

• Should the United States engage in trade or offer
  any
• kind of military support to nations with
  well-documented human rights abuses that are
  contrary to democracy?
• Yes, the U.S. should do business with such
  nations if it benefits the United States.
• No, the United States should not trade or offer
  assistance to nations that are antidemocratic in
  any manner.

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Public Opinion Poll

• Should Congress be required to declare war before
  the
• United States engages in armed conflicts?
• Yes, there should be formal declarations of war
  by Congress that signal the will of the people
  and the nation to engage in the conflict.
• No, formal declarations are not needed and serve
  no real purpose.

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Public Opinion Poll

• Which foreign policy tactic would be the most
• successful to convince the largest number of
  nations to
• adopt policies favorable to the United States?
• Economic benefits and/or sanctions
• Military threats
• Diplomacy (dialogue, negotiation)

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Public Opinion Poll

• Should the United States adopt a more
  isolationist
• foreign policy approach as it did a century ago?
• Yes, the United States should not intervene or
  engage with other nations much, if at all.
• No, the United States must be engaged with the
  rest of the world and viewed as a major
  power/player by other nations.

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Public Opinion Poll

• What is the biggest foreign policy concern to
  American
• national interests?
• Terrorist threats
• Rising economic powers make the American economy
  weaker.
• Cyber hacks and attacks that compromise American
  state secrets (e.g., WikiLeaks)

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Chapter 18 Foreign Policy and Democracy

• Quizzes
• Flashcards
• Outlines
• Exercises
• wwnorton.com/we-the-people

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• Following this slide, you will find additional
  images, figures, and tables from the textbook.

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Interest Groups
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Diplomacy
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Digital Citizens
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Who Makes American Foreign Policy?
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Economic Aid and Sanctions
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Thinking Critically about Americas Role in the
World Today