Foreign/ Military Policy

Zoe Pittman, Jennifer Summers, Jose Carrasquel, Ian HortonAP Government and Politics

Ms. Stedman 15 February 2011

What is Foreign Policy? • Foreign Policy is the diplomatic policies,

procedures, and practices of a country for dealing with nations outside its borders.

• There are 3 types of foreign policies:

• Crisis policy- deals with emergency threats to our national interests or values, and they usually come up as a surprise. Example: Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait provoked the United States like the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington in 2001.

• Strategic Policy- lays out the basic U.S stance toward another country or a particular problem. Example: The plan for the Soviets during the Cold War was to prevent the spread of communism to other countries.

• Structural defense policy- focuses largely on the policies and programs that deal with defense spending and military bases. Example: buying new aircraft or deciding what military bases to consolidate or close down.

• In majoritarian politics, the president and his advisors have the most power, and the policy enacted has much to do with their skills and beliefs

• In interest group and client politics, Congress is the dominant power

• Even though the U.S Secretary of State, now Hillary Clinton, is the official foreign minister and deals with state-to-state diplomacy, Congress and President also have powers that deals with foreign affairs and policy making

• Congress has the power to:

• Regulate Commerce among foreign nations and with Indian tribes.

• Declare War, Issue letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules for captures on land and water. Raise and support armies, provide and maintain a navy, and regulate land and naval forces.

• Define and punish piracies and felonies on high seas and offenses against law of nations.

• President has the power to:

• Negotiate treaties

• Act as Commander and chief of the army and navy.

• Appoints ambassadors, other public ministers, and consuls

• Receive ambassadors and other public ministers.

• Cases:

• Curtiss-Wright Export Corp v. United States (1936): American Foreign policy is vested entirely in the federal government where the president has plenary power and not dependent upon congressional delegation.

• Korematsu v. United States (1944): Sending Japanese Americans to relocation centers during World War II was based on an acceptable military justification. Based on Executive order 9066.

• Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952): The president may not seize factories during wartime without explicit congressional authority even when they are threatened by a strike.

Key Organizations • CATO Institute:

• founded in 1977

• it is a think tank (public policy research organization) that is dedicated to the principles or individual liberty, limited government , free markets, and most importantly peace.

• this institute accepts no funding from the government only from tax-deductible from individuals, foundations, corporations, and the sale of books and publications

• The Heritage Foundation:

• founded in 1973

• their objectives is to protect nations attack on our nation by developing a missile defense system, to make sure that America has the best military system with the proper equipment and training, and to protect our homeland to get it back to where it was before the September 11 attack

• The CIA:

• The Central Intelligence Agency was created in 1947. It was due to the singing of the National Security Act by President Harry Truman. It also created the DCI, the Director of Central Intelligence, to assist the President in matters related to National Security.

• Their Mission “The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is an independent US Government agency responsible for providing national security intelligence to senior US policymakers.”

International Organizations...

• NATO:

• Stands for National Atlantic Treaty Organization

• It is an organization that helps solve conflicts between other nations peacefully. If the diplomatic efforts fail, meaning the means of the government fails, then they come in to take over the crisis.

• Their principle is “An attack against one or several members is an attack against all.”

• Members include: Albania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom, and of course the United States.

• NATO after 9/11:

• After 9/11, NATO was forced to implement their principle an attack on one is an attack on all.

• In 2003 NATO takes command of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. ISAF is a program in Afghanistan to help prevent terrorists, to help provide security, and to contribute to a better future for the people.

• United Nations:

• 50 Countries and states including United States

• organizations or individuals are not allowed to join.

• United Nations has many administrative bodies

• And all countries are expected to provide financial support

• United Nation’s Goals:

• To maintain peace through collective security -every member states must aid other member states if they are attacked by the 3rd party.

• To promote friendly relations among Nations and International Cooperation in solving problems.

• To resolve International disputes peacefully.

• To encourage respect of human rights and freedom.

• Financial obligations to NATO and the United Nations:

• NATO:

• all members are to support NATO in three common budgets Military, Civil, and Security. Recently the U.S has been criticized on how they are not spending enough on military and still want to call upon the military alliance.

• United Nations:

• all members are required to pay “dues”. However, they are also complaining that members are not paying or supporting the United Nations.

What is our role in nation building?

• The U.S tries to use Democracy to help military intervention abroad.

• Nation building is the process of establishing civic order and governmental functions in countries that are emerging from a period of war or other kind of disorder.

• There are some key steps to nation building:

• Security: guaranteeing a safe environment for the citizens.

• Political Reform: building a civil society developing strong local and regional governments  and ensuring freedom of the press and other civil rights.

• Economic Reconstruction: restoring economic infrastructure by establishing lines of credit for business, restarting industry, and creating jobs.

• Strengthening legal institutions: confirming a functional and independent judiciary.

• Examples:

• Following the Al Qaeda acts against the United States in 2001. Currently the United Nations and NATO are keeping order in Kabul. About 10,000 American troops search for Al Qaeda fighters in all areas of the country.

• In the 1990’s President Clinton ordered American military forces to work with United Nations and NATO to end genocide in the Balkans. After a few casulaties American troops and other NATO troops restored peace. However a few NATO troops still remain.

Video: http://www.learner.org/courses/democracyinamerica/dia_15/dia_15_video.html?pop=yes&pid=1925#

Changes Over Time • America’s foreign policy has changed over

time in its national interest.After the Revolutionary War, Americas national interest was to maintain its independence from other European countries. Throughout the 19th century, American focused making a nation that “spanned the continent” and that avoided foreign entanglements. After World War I, a wave of isolationist feeling swept the country. Because of World War II, the United States its foreign policy dramatically.

• The U.S. took the lead in United Nations and invested billions of dollars through the Marshall plan to help strengthen war-devastated European governments. Therefore, American created a system of Alliances including the National Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). American foreign policy has favored the self determination of nations for independence through time. America favors and supports nations that practice democracy.

Budget Costs • Majoritarian- those decisions and non decisions that are

perceived to confer widely distributed benefits and impose widely distributed costs

• Example: decisions to go to war, establishment of military alliances,

• Interest Group- has to do with tariff decisions for specific groups by conferring certain benefits on some and imposing costs on others

• Example: is often used to prevent Americans from buying foreign goods by raising the price of those goods with tariffs

• Client- deals with providing aid to either business abroad or foreign countries without imposing costs on equally distinct groups in society

• Example: the U.S policy towards Israel

Defense Budget • United States spends at the most 4% of

our national wealth on defense spending. We spend at least 20% of our national wealth on social security.

• Defense Budget for 2011

• President Barrack Obama has finalized his defense budget plan for 2011 and it has came out to be $708 billion dollars. The budget includes: $549 billion to fund base defense programs and $159 billion to support operations overseas primarily in Afghanistan and Iraq. This is a $18 billion increase since 2010.

Foreign Aid

• Foreign Aid is an important component of the United States Department’s international affairs. In terms of the dollar the U.S is the largest international aid donor in the world.

Bibliography

• Foreign Policy Association, (n.d.). Retrieved n.d., from http://www .fpa.org/j obs_contac t2423/jobs _contact.h tm

• Annenberg Foundation, (n.d.). Retrieved Feb. 15, 2011, from http://www .learner.o rg/courses /democracy inamerica/ dia_15/dia _15_video. html

• CATO, (n.d.). Retrieved Feb. 15, 2011, from http://www .cato.org/

• NATO, (n.d.). Retrieved Feb. 15, 2011, from http://www .nato.int/ cps/en/SID -7C909406- BC9C55DC/n atolive/wh at_is_nato .htm

• United Nations, (n.d.). Retrieved Feb. 15, 2011, from http://www .un.org/en /aboutun/i ndex.shtml

• The Heritage Foundation, (n.d.). Retrieved Feb. 15, 2011, from http://www.heritage.org/

• Wilson, James. (2006). American Government. (Vol. 10): Houghton Milfton.

• Walling, Donovan. (2008). We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution. (D. Hargrove, Ed.) Center for Civic Education.