Political Science 363/International Studies 363
United
States Foreign Policy
Fall 2005
Bill Newmann,
L. Douglas Wilder School of Government
and Public Affairs
Office Hours: 301B Scherer Hall:
Tuesday, Thursday 11-1:00; Or By Appointment
Phone: Office: 828-8038
e-mail: wnewmann@vcu.edu
Newmann's
home page: http://www.people.vcu.edu/~wnewmann/index.htm
with links to other Newmann syllabi and the International
and Area Studies Program description.
Introduction:
As an introduction
to US foreign
policy, this course has a difficult mandate. In the past decade the
international environment within which the US
must operate has been completely rearranged. For this reason, the readings and
lectures of this course will consider US
foreign policy during the Cold War period (roughly 1945 to 1987--1990), and US
foreign policy as it is being shaped right now in the post 9/11 world. The
course will spend the bulk of it’s time examining the posy cold war world and
its two phases. First, from the fall of
the Berlin wall in 1989 to the
attacks on the Trade Centers
and Pentagon there was little consensus on US foreign policy goals. Politicians, scholars, think tanks, lobby
groups, the media, and the public had generated a number of potential foreign
policy priorities, including: spreading democracy, opening closed economies,
fostering basic human rights in other nations, responding to humanitarian
tragedies, ending civil or ethnic wars, preventing the proliferation of weapons
of mass destruction, deterring the rise of rival great powers, maintaining
regional balances of power, ensuring US hegemony, counterterrorism, and even
reducing the US role in world affairs in an effort to concentrate on the
problems at home. The 9/11 attacks
changed all that, gave the US a clear priority, and began a new era in which
threats to the US and the US role in the world would take on a new shape, a
shape that is still evolving. We’ll
spend a great deal of time examining the new threats to the US
(and just how new and unique they may be), the post-9/11 foreign policy agenda
and the debates over the way it has been implemented.
The course will focus on the
following:
- Foreign
Policy Process: We will examine the wild and wacky world of foreign policy
decision making. Generally, people think that issues as serious as foreign
relations, nuclear weapons policy and armed intervention are decided upon
in the most solemn, rational, and analytical manner. WRONG! Foreign policy
decision making often resembles a bunch of three-year-olds in a sandbox
fighting over the only pail and shovel. Understanding the way decisions
are made is the single most important aspect of analyzing foreign policy.
Many people think that there really is no US
foreign policy, only a process that churns out half-decisions,
non-decisions and useless compromises. By the end of the semester you will
be familiar with the policy making process and all the institutions, Departments,
and Agencies involved;
- The
Cold War Years: In examining the period of intense competition with the
USSR, we will focus on the emergence of the two antagonists in the late
1940s and 1950s; US involvement in Vietnam; detente and arms control
during the Nixon years; the fall of detente and the collapse of arms
control during the Carter years; and the renewed Cold War of the early
Reagan years. The focus is two-fold: the ways in which the US
and USSR
formed a competitive, yet in many ways cooperative relationship. In the USSR,
Mikhail Gorbachev had begun the restructuring of the USSR,
a restructuring that would eventually reshape the world. We will examine
the Reagan and Bush administrations' responses to the changes within the USSR
and the changes around the world that followed. Special attention will be
paid to the first post-Cold War crisis in the world -- the Gulf War of
1990-91, between the US
and its allies and Saddam Hussein's Iraq;
- US
Foreign Policy after the Cold War: Finally, we will explore the range of
possibilities for the future in terms of a number of issues: the rise of
economic priorities; the issue of intervention and peace operations; human
rights and democracy; great power rivals to the US;
and the spread of weapons of mass destruction. We will try to answer the
big picture questions: What world role should the US
assume after the Cold War? Are there economic threats facing the US
that are as challenging as the political-military threat of the old USSR?
How should the US
organize and use its military assets after the Cold War? Is China
the next great rival to the US?
- The
War on Terrorism: The aftermath of September
11, 2001 has changed the way the US
perceives of threats to it national interest and its very survival. We
will explore a range of issues – the nature of the new threats, the merger
of domestic security and national security, reorganizing for homeland
security, and the new ways the US
defines its friends and enemies.
Within each of these categories we will address these key issues:
- way in
which decision makers and the public have defined the national interest
- the
decisions the US
has made concerning the use of force
- the
economic foundations of US
policy and the current threats
- the
struggle for control of US
foreign policy between the executive and legislative branchs
- the limitations and impact of US influence in the
world.
For an extensive list of
governmental and non-governmental sources of information on foreign affairs
click here: Links to
Websites on foreign policy and national security. Some of these
links may be in a state of flux because of the transition to a new
administration. I will try to keep them updated, but if anything changes or
disappears, let me know. No president makes decisions alone. For reference and
for use in your paper I have created a list of key National Security
Assistants from 1896 to the present.
Texts:
You need to read them; you don't
need to buy them. The books are available at the Carriage House Bookstore on North
Harrison Street, in between Grace and Franklin.
They may also be available on reserve at the Cabell Library room 301. If anyone
has problems getting access to the texts, for any reason, let me know as soon
as possible so you don't get too far behind in the reading.
- Stephen Ambrose and Douglas Brinkley. Rise to Globalism, 8th Edition. New York: Penguin Books, 1997 (This edition is not
available in VCU library).
- James
Mann. About Face: A History of America’s Curious Relationship with China, from Nixon to Clinton. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1999. (on reserve: E183.8 .C5
M319 1999)
- James M. Scott. Deciding to Intervene: The
Reagan Doctrine and American Foreign Policy. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 1996. (on reserve: E876 .S36 1996).
- John Stattuck. Freedom on Fire. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2005 (on reserve: JC
571 .S453 2003)
- Ivo Daalder and James Lindsay. America
Unbound: The Bush Revolution in Foreign Policy. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press, 2003. (on reserve: E 902 .D23 2003).
- Final
Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon
the United States. Authorized Edition. New York: W. W. Norton and Co., 2004. (not on reserve)
A guideline for the readings: There
are aspects of US
foreign policy that you should give special attention as you do your readings.
They affect every debate over US foreign policy and it is probably a good idea
to understand how they relate to major issues and events when it comes to the
final exam: (1) Decision Making: US foreign policy does not just happen. Men
and women make those decisions and that process is important in shaping the
actual substance of US foreign policy; (2) Intervention Policy: The US picks
and chooses what type of world events have bearing on US national interests and
in which events it will take an active role. On what basis does the US
make those decisions? How has the US
definition of national interest changed over the years and have the criteria
for involvement in international events changed? (3) Cold War vs. Post-Cold War
vs. War on Terrorism: How have the definitions of US national interests
evolved? (4) Domestic Politics: Are the definitions of national interest and
the content of US
foreign policy based upon the threats the US
faces or on domestic political contests and trends that influence the
perceptions of those threats?
Grading System: Grades will
be determined through the following:
|
Map Quiz
|
September 8
|
5% of the grade
|
|
Exam 1
|
September 29
|
20% of the grade
|
|
Exam 2
|
October 27
|
25% of the grade
|
|
Research
Paper
|
December 6
|
25% of the grade
|
|
Exam 3
|
December 13, 8:00--11:00 in
the regular classroom
|
25% of the grade
|
How do you calculate your grade? Use
the percentages from the above table. So, if you received the following grades,
you would calculate your grades in the following manner:
- Map
quiz: 100, at 5% of the grade; that’s 100 multiplied by .05 = 5.0
- Exam
1: 87, at 20% of the grade; that’s 87 multiplied by .20 = 17.40
- Exam
2: 92, at 25% of the grade; that’s 92 multiplied by .25 = 23.0
- Paper:
94, at 25% of the grade; that’s 94 multiplied by .25 = 23.5
- Exam
3: 90, at 25% of the grade; that’s 90 multiplied by .25 = 22.5
- To
get the final grade, add up all the scores: 5 + 17.4 + 23.0 + 23.5 = 22.5
= 91.4. Congratulations you got an A.
I give you this very detailed
formula for a number of reasons. You should never be unaware of what your class
average is. You can calculate it at any point in the semester. If your grade is
not what you'd like it to be, you should know, and you should come see me about
it. Do not come to me after Exam 3 and say that you're having trouble in the
class. It's too late at that point. But any time in the semester that you feel
you are having trouble, or not doing as well as you feel you should, come talk
to me. During my office hours and by appointment I am happy to talk to you
about the class
Grading scale: I use a typical
scale: A = 90-100; B = 80-89; C = 70-79; D = 55-69. Borderline grades are
considered in the following manner. If your grade is 69.5, 79.5, or 89.5, then
you are a candidate for a round up to the higher grade IF your grades have been
going up during the semester. That means that if you are borderline, but your
third exam is lower than the previous exams (you are between a B and C, but
your third exam is a C, you will probably get the lower grade. If you are
between a B and C, but your third exam is a B, you will probably get the B).
EXAMS: The exams will be
short answer and essay. One week before the exam I will place a review sheet
on line, linked to this syllabus, below this paragraph. This review sheet
should be used as your study guide for the exam. The review sheet will include
some terms that are from the readings only, so that you can go back and review
those items from the readings. Once you have the review sheet, feel free to ask
me questions about the terms. This is the best way to study for the exam. If
you understand the terms on the review sheet, you can define each one and see
how each one relates to the larger concepts and issues we've discussed in
class, you should do just fine on the exam. The exams will consist of short
answer/identifications and one essay. I will give more details on the exams in
class as we approach the first exam.
Review 1
Review 2
Review 3
RESEARCH PAPER
Topic of paper due: October 18!!! A
one paragraph description of your paper topic. See the research paper
handout or web page for a more complete description of the assignment and
policy regarding late papers. To get a good grade on the research paper, you
must read the assignment carefully. Ask me questions about anything that is
unclear. If you do not read the assignment, you will do poorly on the paper.
The assignment asks you to do something very specific related to theories of
foreign policy decision making. If you choose to write this research paper
without reading the assignment, it is like taking an exam without reading the
questions.
Paper due: December 6 AT THE START
OF CLASS (After that it will be considered late): Up until November 29 I
will review rough drafts, outlines, whatever. For the assignment see the
Research Paper assignment on line. On reserve and on line is a RESEARCH
MANUAL. Use it and you will get a much better grade on your paper,
and more importantly you will learn how to do research and write an organized
paper. In particular, pay special attention to the section on sources (bibliographies,
footnotes/endnotes). If you choose to ignore the research manual, you do so at
your own peril and risk everlasting doom (Am I being subtle enough?)
COURSE AND READING SCHEDULE
(Note: For the first few weeks the
readings will be ahead of the class lectures. Make sure you keep up, though. If
you do not do the readings you will quickly be lost and you'll be in serious
trouble on the first exam).
Week 1: August 22-26
Introduction
No Readings
Week 2: August 29-September 2
National Security Decision Making
Ambrose
Chapters 2-5, pp. 15-94;
Week 3: September 5-9
Cold War I: Rules of the Game
Map Quiz:
September 8
Ambrose
Chapter 6-9, pp. 95-170;
Week 4: September 12-16
Cold War II:
Ambrose
Chapter 10-11, pp. 171-223.
Mann
Prologue, Chapters 1-2, pp. 3-52. (These readings will be ahead of the
lecture).
Week 5: September 19-23
Viet Nam and
Detente
Ambrose
Chapter 12-13, pp. 224-280.
Mann
Chapter 3, pp. 53-78.
Week 6: September 26-30 Détente Collapses the New Cold War Begins
Exam I: September 29
The following readings are not on
the first exam!
Ambrose
Chapter 14, pp. 281-302.
Mann
Chapter 4-5, pp. 78-115.
Week 7: October 3-7
The New Cold War: The Reagan Administration
Ambrose
Chapter 15, pp. 303-351;
Scott
Chapter 1 and 2, pp. 1-39.
Week 8: October 10-14
The End of the Cold War
Scott
Chapter 3 and 6, pp. 40-81 and
152-193.
Week 9: October 17-21
Remaking US Foreign Policy in the GHW Bush’s “New
World Order”
Mann
Chapters 9-11, pp. 175-225.
Ambrose:
Chapters 16-17, pp. 352-397.
Paper topic Due: October 18 (one paragraph describing your topic)
No Class: October 20
Week 10: October 24-28
A Post-Cold War Foreign Policy: The Clinton
Doctrine I
Exam
2: October 27
The following readings are not on
the second exam
Ambrose
Chapter 18, pp. 398-428.
Shattuck
Introduction, pp. 1-20.
Week 11: October 31--November
4 The Clinton Doctrine II
Shattuck
Chapters 1-2 and 4, pp. 21-76 and 113-151.
Week 12: November 7-11:
The World Before 9/11: China
as the Next Threat
Shattuck
Portions of Chapter 5-6, pp.
152-167, 184-185, and 206-220.
Mann
Chapters 15-17, pp. 274-338.
Week 13: November 14-18: GW Bush in Office
Daalder
and Lindsay
Chapter 1-6, pp. 1-97.
Week 14: November 21-25
War on Terrorism Begins
9/11 Report
Chapters 2, 3, and 4, pp. 47-144
No
class November 24: Happy Thanksgiving
Week 15: November 28-December 2 The Bush Doctrine
Last day to turn in rough drafts of the research paper: November 29
9/11 Report
Chapters 5-6, and 8, pp. 145-214
and 254-277.
Week 16: December
3-9 The Iraq
War
Research Paper Due, December 6, at the start of
class.
Daalder and Lindsay
Chapters
7-10, pp. 98-171.
Exam 3: Tuesday December 13,
8:00-11:00 in the regular class room.