George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Post-Conflict Northern Ireland

After Clinton’s second term in office ended, President George W Bush moved the Special Envoy to Northern Ireland to the State Department, but his Envoys, led by Richard Haass and Mitchell Reiss, were no less engaged in Northern Irish affairs as the political figures there sought to create a functional government at Stormont Parliament Buildings. A series of significant obstacles emerged, but the Northern Ireland Assembly finally formed in 2007 before Bush left office. He was succeeded by President Barack Obama who had little interest in Northern Ireland but Obama’s initial Secretary of State, former Senator Hillary Clinton, was well-versed in Northern Irish issues. This chapter also examines the role of Northern Ireland in the 2008 Democratic Primary contest and, to a lesser extent, the 2008 Presidential Election.

Thatcher, Reagan, and Northern Ireland

The election of Ronald Reagan in 1980 reinforced one of the most famous international alliances, often known as the “special relationship”, and this chapter explores the ways in which Reagan was often caught between the direction of the US Congress, in particular Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill and Senator Ted Kennedy, and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The changing dynamics of the conflict in Northern Ireland saw electoral politics rise to prominence, particularly following the 1981 hunger strike that saw ten republican prisoners starve to death, with two of the men elected to public office in London and Dublin. The influence of both O’Neill and Reagan on the 1985 Anglo Irish Agreement, a significant moment in the developing peace process, is also examined in this chapter, as is the issue of the extradition of IRA on-the-runs from the US to the UK.

Conclusion

This final chapter draws together the complicated narrative of United States involvement in Northern Ireland. It seeks to explore patterns of intervention and non-intervention and draw out recurring themes from the near-half-century under examination in the book. It concludes by considering the continuing importance of full investment in the maintenance and development of the peace process by all actors and the dissolution of the Stormont Assembly in January 2017.

The Bush Administration and Northern Ireland as a Local Political Issue

The British government welcomed Vice President George HW Bush’s election in 1988 and, predictably, his policy towards Northern Ireland remained consistent throughout his single term in office. In local politics, however, much was made of the situation in Northern Ireland, most notable in the office of the Mayor of New York City. There, Ed Koch and David Dinkins both took an interest in Northern Ireland with the latter heavily involved in the campaign to extradite Joe Doherty, an IRA member who had been convicted of killing a British Army officer, from New York to Northern Ireland. The Doherty case had led to the signing of a new extradition agreement between the US and UK but still Doherty resisted his removal. The chapter also examines the 1992 Presidential Election with particular focus on the Democratic Primary campaign which saw former Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton’s interest in Northern Ireland develop over a series of weeks and months before he pledged to involve the US Government, if elected, in ways never before seen.

The Early Years of the ‘Troubles’

This chapter explores the conduct of actors in the United States Government during the early years of the violence in Northern Ireland. It considers the reasons for the relatively non-interventionist approach that Richard Nixon adopted during the first year of his administration and places emphasis on the role of Ambassador John Moore, a prominent Irish-American figure. It also provides an analytical narrative of the development of violence in Northern Ireland, placing this alongside an examination of the responses of the US media and officials. It then assesses the relatively minimal impact of Nixon’s resignation and the inauguration of President Gerald Ford on the US role in Northern Ireland. Finally, it looks at the Democratic Primary campaign in 1968 and the British response to the prospects of a Democratic President winning the Presidential Election that year.

Introduction

Gerry Adams is long credited with masterminding the so-called long war and I don’t believe that for a minute. I think what Gerry Adams was orchestrating was the long peace process and I think that started in the 70s … They had a lot of patience and they did a lot of planning but as a republican I don’t think they did it on their own, I think they had a lot of help....

Bill Clinton and the Path to Good Friday

Clinton’s election in 1992 brought a Democrat back to the White House. Clinton had pledged to involve the United States in the Northern Ireland peace process more significantly than any previous administration, and immediately set about exploring issues such as a visitor's visa for Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams and the creation of a Special Envoy to Northern Ireland, duly following through on both pledges despite resistance from Ulster unionists. This chapter utilizes a range of state and personal papers to examine the ways in which Clinton was engaged and advised by a small group of Irish-American supporters, led by a former college friend and former Congressman, Bruce Morrison. The chapter also examines the three visits that Clinton made to Northern Ireland, focusing on his historic 1995 visit. In particular, the chapter considers the role of the US government in the achievement of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement and the associated paramilitary ceasefires that preceded it.

Jimmy Carter and the Presidential Statement on Northern Ireland

This chapter explores the 1977 statement on Northern Ireland which was delivered by President Jimmy Carter. Expanding on issues identified in the previous chapter, it considers Carter’s approach to Northern Ireland at a time when governments in both the UK and Ireland were changing. It focuses on the State Department embargo on gun sales to the Royal Ulster Constabulary and considers the difficulties this posed for Anglo-American relations at the time. It also looks at the developing protest in the prison system of Northern Ireland, which would ultimately lead to a hunger strike by IRA and INLA prisoners.

The USA and Ireland before 1968

The first chapter examines the historical relationship between the United States and Northern Ireland, offering an overview of Irish-American relations throughout the 20th century with a particular focus on the period after the partition of Ireland. It looks at early US investment in Northern Ireland, an issue which would come to have great significance in later years. It also considers the role that US Presidents had in Ireland and Northern Ireland prior to the outbreak of the Northern Ireland conflict, and establishes the broader context to JFK’s famous 1963 visit to Ireland.