Legitimacy, Messiness, and Reflections

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
David R. Mayhew
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Economic Growth ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Policy Success ◽  
The U.S

This chapter presents transnational comparisons so as to show how the United States has performed distinctively. U.S. economic growth and foreign policy success have profited from its helpful size, natural wealth, and location, as well as an absence of powerful, aggressive nations next door. In many cases, however, the U.S. performance has been transnationally generic or close to that, offering little help for upside or downside readings of American distinctiveness or exceptionalism. As for Congress, it is difficult to capture it in isolation if one's concern is the performance of the whole U.S. government versus the performances of governments elsewhere. What cries out for comparison is the end result of complex complementarities between Congress and the presidency.

The United States Congress and Africanist Scholars

1991 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 4-13
Author(s):  
David S. Wiley
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
The United States ◽  
African Studies ◽  
United States Congress ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Low Levels ◽  
The U.S

Linking scholars to the Congress is difficult primarily because of the weakness of Congressional interest in Africa, but also due to the low levels of interest among academics in both Congress and its Africa foreign policy and the poor resources of African studies in the U.S. to build a foundation of knowledge useful to the Congress.

scholarly journals Learning from Past Policy: Assessing United States Foreign Policy over Indonesia in Resolving the 1999 East Timor Crisis

2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Sigit S. Nugroho
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
The United States ◽  
East Timor ◽  
United States Foreign Policy ◽  
Case Study Analysis ◽  
High Degree ◽  
The U.S

Assessing the output of past foreign policy is instrumental for any country to learn policy-relevant insights, to appreciate its experience, and to improve its future conduct. To glean such insights, this article borrows Baldwin’s framework in assessing the success and failure in foreign policy. Using a case study analysis, it assesses the United States’ (U.S.) influence attempt towards Indonesia to resolve the 1999 East Timor humanitarian crisis. President Clinton’s decision to undergo an influence attempt primarily aimed to change Indonesia’s policy while gaining support from U.S. allies in the process. The article finds that Clinton’s decision was a highly successful attempt. This finding is based on several factors: (1) the attempt effectively attained the intended primary and secondary goals at a considerably high degree; (2) it was conducted at a considerably low cost for the U.S.; (3) it inflicted a high cost towards Indonesia; (4) the increase in Clinton’s stake strengthened the U.S. resolve to pursue the influence attempt; and (5) Clinton had successfully overcome the difficult undertaking as Indonesia possessed higher stake over East Timor. These findings provide some lessons for both U.S. and Indonesian foreign policymakers to chart future relations for the two nations.

The Influence of the United States in Chilean Politics

2020 ◽  
pp. 189-204
Author(s):  
Sebastián Hurtado-Torres
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
The United States ◽  
Political Actors ◽  
Political Debates ◽  
Social Modernization ◽  
Global Cold War ◽  
Considerable Support ◽  
The U.S

This concluding chapter reflects on the influence of the United States in Chilean politics. Since the dynamics of Chilean politics replicated very closely the ideological divide of the global Cold War, the overarching goal of the U.S. strategy toward Chile between 1964 and 1970 was to keep the Marxist Left from taking power. Arguably, the most important part of that strategy was the considerable support provided to the reformist political project of the Christian Democratic Party, as it constituted a viable alternative to the growing appeal of the revolutionary Left and offered a path toward economic and social modernization that coincided with the ideological outlook of the Johnson administration's foreign policy. Despite an imbalance of power, the U.S. foreign policy apparatus did not determine the motivations or intentions of the Chilean political actors with which it established relationships, nor did it shape the political debates on which the U.S. interests in Chile could be at stake. The United States established itself as a relevant and even powerful informal actor in Chilean politics but only as an ally of forces whose interests and goals, though convergent with U.S. interests, were independent.

The United States, the International Criminal Court, and Afghanistan: The Rupturing of Mutual Accommodation

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 1068-1107
Author(s):  
Kevin S. Robb ◽  
Shan Patel
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
National Security ◽  
International Criminal Court ◽  
International Criminal ◽  
The United States ◽  
Criminal Court ◽  
Strategic Approach ◽  
Chief Prosecutor ◽  
The U.S

Abstract In September 2018, then U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton delivered a speech that ushered in a new, more aggressive era of U.S. foreign policy vis-à-vis the International Criminal Court (icc). Washington’s disapprobation over the icc’s interest in the alleged crimes of U.S. personnel in Afghanistan has been seen as the cause for this change. While this is certainly partly true, little attention has been paid to Fatou Bensouda’s prosecutorial behaviour as an explanatory factor. Using the framework from David Bosco’s Rough Justice, this article demonstrates that a distinct shift in prosecutorial behaviour occurred when Fatou Bensouda took over as Chief Prosecutor. In contrast to Luis Moreno Ocampo’s strategic approach, avoidant of U.S. interests, Bensouda’s apolitical approach directly challenged the U.S. This shift in prosecutorial behaviour ruptured the ‘mutual accommodation’ that previously characterised the icc-U.S. relationship and, in turn, produced the shift in U.S. policy that now marginalises the Court.

Skepticism and Stability: Reevaluating U.S. Policy during Poland's Democratic Transformation in 1989

2011 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 52-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory F. Domber
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
The United States ◽  
Evolutionary Change ◽  
Foreign Affairs ◽  
Democratic Transformation ◽  
The U.S

This article evaluates the U.S. role in the revolutions of 1989, specifically the claim that the U.S. government was a catalyst, accelerating the pace of change in Eastern Europe. Drawing from memoirs, declassified U.S. cables, Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs reports, and underground literature from the Polish opposition, the article shows that the policy of George H. W. Bush's administration was not a “catalyst” and did not even “grease the skids” to remove Communist governments from power during the first ten months of 1989. Rather, the United States pursued a much more cautious policy that actively sought to impede the pace of change. The evidence indicates that U.S. policy was much more fixated on promoting stability in Eastern Europe, preferring evolutionary change to revolutionary transformation. The article concludes by placing these findings in the context of the emerging scholarship on the revolutions of 1989 and the Bush administration's foreign policy

The Maquiladora Industry: Recent Downturn And Future Prospects

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Javad Gorjidooz ◽  
Bijan Vasigh
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Economic Growth ◽  
Business Cycle ◽  
Labor Demand ◽  
The United States ◽  
Global Competition ◽  
Bracero Program ◽  
Major Player ◽  
The Business Cycle ◽  
The U.S

The Maquiladora industry was created in the mid-1960 as the United States terminated the Bracero program. The main objective of the Bracero program was to bring in Mexican workers to fulfill U.S. agricultural labor demand. The end of the Bracero program left thousands of unemployed farm workers in Mexican cities bordering the U.S. The Maquiladora programs intent was to subsidize foreign manufacturers that set up plants on the Mexico side of the border to create jobs for the Mexican workers. Mexico allowed plants to temporarily import supplies, parts, machinery, and equipment necessary to produce goods and services in Mexico duty-free as long as the output was exported back to the United States. U.S. firms, as well as other multinational companies, responded enthusiastically to the lure of cheap labor. Mexico experienced high economic growth and become a major player in exporting intra-industry products to the U.S. The NAFTA and other free trade agreements signed by Mexico helped the economic growth of the Maquiladora region. Maquiladora employment increased significantly since the inception of the Maquiladora industry and Maquiladora exports now account for half of Mexicos total exports. The Maquiladora industry is U.S.-demand driven since most of Mexicos Maquiladora production is destined for the U.S. market. The recent recession in the U.S. took a heavy toll on Mexicos Maquiladora industry. Another challenge to the Maquiladora industry is raising global competition, particularly from China. Therefore, the magnitude of the industrys contraction during the most recent recession suggests that there are more factors influencing the industry than just the business cycle. This paper presents the creation of the Maquiladora industry, its success following the NAFTA agreement, and its recent downturn. It also explores the answers to the following questions: How much of the Maquiladora downturn was due to the business cycle? How much was due to structural change? Is the Maquiladora industry ready to face rising global competition?

Struggle for the Turf

1985 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 403-415
Author(s):  
Henry Trofimenko
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Policy Process ◽  
American Foreign Policy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Political Decision ◽  
Political Decision Making ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
The U.S

For anyone whose job is to study the United States, the memoirs of its statesmen provide more than merely entertaining reading. They not only give you a closer insight into the “kitchen” of statesmanship and political decision making; they also provide an opportunity to check the assumptions and paradigms that were constructed earlier to analyze the policy of any particular administration. The memoirs confirm that in spite of hundreds of books and thousands of articles in the U.S. press that discuss specific policies, as well as daily debates in Congress and its committees, press conferences, and official statements, the policy process is not as open as it might seem at first glance. Rather, American foreign policy is made within a very restricted circle of the “initiated”—official and unofficial presidential advisers, including selected members of the Cabinet.

scholarly journals Impact of institutional factors on economic growth in the United States in the years 1979–2007

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dorota Kuder
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Economic Growth ◽  
The United States ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Positive Influence ◽  
Institutional Factors ◽  
Working Population ◽  
Proportional Increase ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The U.S

The purpose of this article is to isolate and determine the importance of institutional arrangements in shaping the dynamics of the U.S. GDP in the years 1979–2007. The research hypothesis which has been verified here can be summarized as follows: institutions in the U.S. economy have a positive influence on economic growth through a significant impact on improving the business environment. Having regard to the division of the economy into institutional areas: economic system, labor market, financial market, education and R&D, the author selected these institutional factors which indicated that the operation could be important for the process of economic growth in the United States, and then measured the impact in the years 1979–2007. To verify the thesis about the impact of institutions on economic growth the author used one of the most popular tools in this kind of econometric research – the multiple regression analysis. The analysis revealed that during the period of all the analyzed institutional factors it was the proportion of the working population and the degree of unionization that most strongly influenced the economic growth of the United States – an increase in one of these factors was associated with a much more than proportional increase in the rate of the economic growth.

scholarly journals Public and cultural diplomacy of the United States

2016 ◽  
pp. 59-70
Author(s):  
Illya Gavrylevko
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Cultural Diplomacy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Policy Tool ◽  
The U.S

The paper deals with public and cultural diplomacy of the United States, which are regarded as a specific foreign policy tool. The author traces back the introduction of such practice by the United States and its evolution, and also distinguishes their features. Special attention is being paid to the issue of effectiveness of the U.S. public and cultural diplomacy.

The End of MAD? The Nuclear Dimension of U.S. Primacy

2006 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 7-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keir A. Lieber ◽  
Daryl G. Press
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Cold War ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Long Range ◽  
The United States ◽  
Great Powers ◽  
Nuclear Exchange ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
The U.S

For nearly half a century, the world's most powerful nuclear-armed states have been locked in a condition of mutual assured destruction. Since the end of the Cold War, however, the nuclear balance has shifted dramatically. The U.S. nuclear arsenal has steadily improved; the Russian force has sharply eroded; and Chinese nuclear modernization has progressed at a glacial pace. As a result, the United States now stands on the verge of attaining nuclear primacy, meaning that it could conceivably disarm the long-range nuclear arsenals of Russia and China with a nuclear first strike. A simple nuclear exchange model demonstrates that the United States has a potent first-strike capability. The trajectory of nuclear developments suggests that the nuclear balance will continue to shift in favor of the United States in coming years. The rise of U.S. nuclear primacy has significant implications for relations among the world's great powers, for U.S. foreign policy, and for international relations scholarship.

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