American Foreign & Defense Policy - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

American Foreign & Defense PolicySlide2

Early Thoughts…

Sam Adams

“

Even when there is a necessity of military power…a wise and prudent people will always have a watchful eye over it”Slide3

Early Thoughts…

Elbridge Gerry

“standing armies in time of peace are inconsistent with the principles of republican governments, dangerous to the liberties of a free people, and generally converted into destructive engines for establishing despotism”Slide4

Early Thoughts…

Alexander Hamilton

“a dangerous and expensive undertaking”Slide5

Early Thoughts…

James Madison

A standing military force…will not long be safe companions to liberty. The means of defense against foreign danger have always been the instruments of tyranny at home.Slide6

Civil-Military

Problematique

The very thing that is designed to protect a polity can become its greatest threatSlide7

Civil-Military

Problematique

The very thing that is designed to protect a polity can become its greatest threatSlide8

Solutions?Slide9

The Reality of Foreign Policy

Early U.S. Foreign Policy was a mixture of

Realism (Pursuing American Interests) and

Idealism (Carrying Out American Ideals)

with a strong rejection of traditional Imperialism.

Instances of Realism:

Barbary Wars (1801 – 1805; 1815)

Louisiana Purchase (1803)

War of 1812

U.S. Mexican War (1846 – 1848) Slide10

Interests Win #1: The Barbary Wars

Ideal: Not having an external military presence

Event: North African Berber States captured U.S. ships for slaves and ransom.

Problematic: In 1800, more than 15% of the federal budget was used for tribute payments.

Action:

Improve

the U.S. NavySlide11

Interests Win #2: The Louisiana Purchase

Ideal: The President should be passive

Event: French offer to sell Louisiana to U.S.

Practical Goals: Get Europeans out – and avoid entanglement in European conflicts

Washington’s Farewell Address

The Monroe Doctrine (1823)

Problematic: This was a

huge

opportunity, too good to pass upSlide12

A Case for Pragmatism: The Louisiana Purchase

Action: Jefferson makes the PurchaseSlide13

Interests Win #3: The War of 1812

Chesapeake – Leopard Affair

Despite clear political interests, a sense of humiliation contributed to the U.S. declaration of war against the United Kingdom.Slide14

Ideals Win #1: The Quest for Mexican Oil

Interest: The United States needed petroleum

Event: Mexico nationalizes petroleum industry in 1938, making it harder to get oil, and British wanted to invade

Tempting: Seized oil will be cheaper

Problematic:

Seizure violates

the

ideal

of voluntary

trade

Idealistic Action: The U.S. restrains Great Britain and negotiates oil trade with MexicoSlide15

Ideals Win #2: The Suez Canal Controversy

Interest: The United States want to keep global trade going.

Event: Egypt nationalizes the Suez Canal in 1956, potentially choking off 10% of global trade; Britain, Israel and France invade.

Tempting: Western control would be more convenient

Problematic:

Seizure violates

the

ideal

of G

ood Neighbor policy

Idealistic Action: The U.S. restrains military actionSlide16

Also a Conflict between Politics and the People

Politicians like Wilson knew that the public dislikes

Interventionism

– making it difficult to balance interests and ideals

1916 Campaign on Peace

Prepare for WarSlide17

Joining the Rest of the World – the End of Isolationism

Beginning with Franklin D. Roosevelt – the United States reevaluate their role in the World:

Political Elites start to see

Isolationism

as problematic

The United States have a shared responsibility for mankind

U.S. Power as a force for good in the World

Switch from

Quincy Adams "Americans should not go abroad to slay dragons they do not understand in the name of spreading

democracy“ – to IdealismSlide18

The American Century

1945 puts the Unites States into a position of unique opportunity:

First, a global power shift from

With the defeat of Fascism, the World is split between the U.S. led West and the Communist Block under the Soviet Union (behind the “Iron Curtain”).

VS.Slide19

Full Engagement replaces Isolationism

With the exception of the United States, the Industrial World laid in ruins after WWII.

Used power to build institutions to preserve global peace:

The

United Nations (UN)

The

World Bank

The

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which became the

World Trade Organization

(WTO)

The

Marshall Plan

Engagement should replace War.Slide20

This Policy led to mixed results

Some initiatives were clearly a success:

The reconstruction of Europe

Globalization

The prevention of Nuclear War

Victory in the

Cold War

“Idealistic” Wars – Humanitarian Intervention (Middle East, Balkans,…)

Others, however, were less successful:

No Third World War, but a Third World’s War

Instability due to rapid decolonization Slide21

American Hegemony ruled the day

No decision on a global scale can be made without U.S. consent.

The U.S. are the only state that can almost immediately project power (military, political, economic) everywhere on the globe

In short: From refusing to join the World System, the United States became its main proponent

The U.S. are (were?) the global “

Ordnungsmacht

– the Order MakerSlide22

Being the World’s superpower comes at a price!

Strong military buildupSlide23

Ultimately, on what does U.S. Power rest?

Is it this?

Or this?

No, the answer to this question is in everyone’s pocket.Slide24

The true source of American PowerSlide25

More than just a currency!

Backed up by the power of the U.S. economy

Ticket to economic security (global reserve currency

)Slide26

Made possible by the strength of the U.S. EconomySlide27

U.S. Power is waning

Economic power is declining:

From being the world’s biggest creditor, beginning with the seventies the nation became the world’s biggest debtor.

By 2020, the U.S. will spend more on debt interest than on its military.

By 2015, Interest payments to China alone will cover the cost of the Chinese army.Slide28

If Money drains, Power drains

U.S. dependence on others reduces its ability to act as the global order maker.

It will become harder to push for American ideals like

Democracy

Human Rights

Capitalism

on a global scale.