INTRODUCTION
Government 270 provides an introduction to the study of American foreign policy. After a brief historical overview emphasizing enduring themes of U.S. foreign policy, the course focuses on the policy-making process and examines the impact of intragovernmental rivalries, the press, public opinion, and interest groups. In the final section, we will explore the challenge facing the Clinton administration of developing a foreign policy appropriate for the beginning of the 21st century with particular emphasis on the role of military force in advancing U.S. interests.
READINGS
Please purchase the following from the Smith Union Bookstore:
Stephen Ambrose and Douglas Brinkley, Rise to Globalism (8th ed., New York: Penguin Books, 1997)
“Government 270 Course Packet”- an anthology of readings designated on the syllabus (CP)
All the readings on the syllabus are required. Unless I tell you otherwise, they should be completed by the first date on the syllabus under which they are listed. To keep on top of current events, you should also be reading a major newspaper regularly. For purposes of class discussion and exams, I will assume that you have been reading the New York Times on a daily basis. Discount subscriptions are available on campus.
REQUIREMENTS AND GRADES
Each of you must make a choice early in the term concerning the mix of papers and exams you will complete. To meet basic course requirements, you must submit/take enough of them to equal 100 points. Each of the papers and exams is worth the following number of points, the point total also reflecting the approximate weight it will receive when I determine your final grade:
Midterm exam (1)= 25 points
Short papers (3) = 25 points/each
Final exam (1) = 50 points
Research paper (1)= 50 points
Two restrictions: You must take at least one of the exams and you must submit at least 50 points worth of work by March 19.
(If you want to do both a research paper and the final, the research paper must be in by March 19, rather than April 30.) Thus, the possible choices are:
1) Midterm, 1 short paper, and the final
2) Midterm, 1 short paper, and a research paper
3) 2 short papers and the final
4) Midterm and 3 short papers
5) Research paper and the final
Students are expected to attend all classes and to contribute to the State Department briefings and discussions outlined below. Participation will be taken into account in determining your final grade. For the briefings, you will prepare a background paper on your country or organization and monitor developments in that area throughout the term (see below).
CLASS ATTENDANCE POLICY
Students are encouraged to attend and to participate actively in all classes. Each student is entitled to three unexcused absences without penalty. It is your responsibility to sign in at the start of each class. Absences due to scheduled athletic competitions must be discussed with me before the event. Each unexcused absence beyond three will lower your grade one step (eg. B- to C+). I will treat any cheating (for instance, signing in the name of someone else) as a violation of the Bowdoin College Honor Code.
"ON-LINE" COURSE COMPONENT
I intend to make extensive use of email throughout the course. You are responsible for being aware of all e-mail messages sent out and you should therefore read your e-mail on a daily basis. Most will go out on the 'gov270' distribution list that has been set up for the course. Personal messages (problems, requests for appointments, death threats, etc.) should be sent to "aspringe," not the distribution list. I plan to use the distribution list in three distinctly different ways, although the lines between them may become blurred.
First, it is through email messages to me (acting in my role as Secretary of State) that you will update me on developments in your individual areas of responsibility. Each of you is expected to provide at least 4 such updates over the course of the term. Though directed to me, your "briefing" will go to everyone in the class and thus help keep them informed as well. Your briefing may, in turn, lead to an on-line discussion within our State Department about how the U.S. should respond to the situation you have outlined, a discussion to which I may or may not contribute. (I am a very busy person.) In these discussions, I will be "Madeline."
Second, the list will be used to carry on discussions that go beyond the roles we will be playing in the State Department briefings. For instance, one of you might want to comment on one of the assigned articles; others may respond and the discussion will continue as long as people are interested. I may chime in, perhaps to do no more than play "devil's advocate" in the discussion. At other times, I may call attention to a particularly interesting foreign policy issue we may not have time to discuss in class or an op-ed piece in the Times as worth a closer look. In these discussions, I will be "Professor X."
Third, I will use the list to let you know of any changes in class schedule, due dates, etc.. As we get closer to exams, I will also try to answer your questions, at least those that I consider reasonable and of general interest. This is not the place for me to reteach the course. Thus clearly stated, specific questions have a much greater chance of triggering a response than general pleas for help (e.g. "Mr. Springer, how is American foreign policy made?"). In these discussions, I will be "ALS," as close to the real person as you are likely to encounter in this course.
The course also has its own web page (http://www.bowdoin.edu/~aspringe ), which is accessible directly or through my personal web page http://www.bowdoin.edu/~aspringe. On it you will find a copy of the course syllabus (updated, as necessary), paper topics, etc. You will also find a link to some other web pages you may find helpful in keeping up with current events and in researching papers.
SYLLABUS
I. Course Introduction-- 1/26
II. Sources of U.S. Foreign Policy
A. Evolution of the American "National Style"--- 1/28, 2/2
Stephen Ambrose, Rise to Globalism, entire
B. Realism, Geopolitics and the "National Interest"--- 2/4
Hans Morgenthau, In Defense of the National Interest (New York: Alfred K. Knopf, Inc., 1952), pp. 3-39 (CP)
Michael Mandelbaum, "Foreign Policy as Social Work," Foreign Affairs (January/February 1996), Vol. 75, No. 1, pp. 16-32 (CP)
Stanley Hoffman, "In Defense of Mother Teresa: Morality in Foreign Policy," Foreign Affairs (March/April 1996), Vol. 75, No. 2, pp. 172-175 (CP)
III. The Policy-Making Process
A. The Growth of the National Security Bureaucracy
1. The Role of the State Department and the Rise of the NSC--- 2/9, 2/11
George Kennan, "Diplomacy Without Diplomats," Foreign Affairs (September/October 1997), Vol. 76, No. 5, pp. 198-213 (CP)
Duncan Clarke, "Why State Can't Lead," Foreign Policy (Spring 1987), No. 66, pp. 128-142 (CP- pending permission)
Strobe Talbot, "Globalization and Diplomacy: A Practioner's Perspective" Foreign Policy (Fall 1997), No. 108, pp. 69-83
Walter Isaacson, “Kissinger’s Empire,” Kissinger: A Biography (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1992), pp. 183- 211 (CP- pending permission)
2. The Defense Community--- 2/16
Richard H. Kohn, “The Crisis in Military-Civilian Relations,” The National Interest (Spring 1994), No. 35, pp. 3-17 (CP)
Colin Powell, et al, “An Exchange on Civil-Military Relations,” The National Interest ( Summer 1994), No. 36, pp. 23-31 (CP)
Robert Kaplan, "Fort Leavenworth and the Eclipse of Nationhood," Atlantic Monthly (September 1996), Vol. 278, No. 3, pp. 74-90 (CP)
3. The Intelligence Community--- 2/18
Walter B. Wriston, "Bits, Bytes, and Diplomacy," Foreign Affairs (September/October 1997), Vol. 76, No. 5, pp. 172-182 (CP)
Melvin A. Goodman, "Ending the CIA's Cold War Legacy," Foreign Policy (Spring 1997), No. 106, pp. 128-143 (CP)
4. The Bureaucratic Politics Model Revisited--- 2/23
Stephen D. Krasner, "Are Bureaucracies Important? (Or Allison Wonderland)," Foreign Policy (Summer 1972), No. 7, pp. 159-179 (CP- pending permission)
B. The Separation of Powers and Foreign Policy--- 2/25, 3/2, 3/4
“The War Powers Resolution,” Public Law 93-148 [H.J. Res. 542], Stat. 555, passed over President’s veto, 7 November 1973, in Legislation on Foreign Relations Through 1991 (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1992), pp. 1123-1128 (CP)
Stephen E. Ambrose, "The Presidency and Foreign Policy," Foreign Affairs (Winter 1991-92), Vol. 70 , No. 5, pp. 120-137 (CP)
Michael J. Glennon, "The Gulf War and the Constitution," Foreign Affairs (Spring 1991), Vol. 70, No. 2, pp. 84-101 (CP)
Robert S. Greenberger, "Dateline Capitol Hill: the New Majority's Foreign Policy," Foreign Policy (Winter 1995-96), No. 101, pp. 159-169 (CP)
C. "External" Influences
1. Public Opinion and Interest Groups--- 3/9, 3/11
Joseph O'Grady, "Clinton's Irish Surprise," Foreign Affairs (May/June 1996), Vol. 75, No. 3, pp. 47-63 (CP)
Yossi Shain, "Multicultural Foreign Policy," Foreign Policy (Fall 1995), No. 100, pp. 69-87 (CP)
Steven Kull, "What the Public Knows that Washington Doesn't," Foreign Policy (Winter 1995-96), No. 101, pp. 102-115 (CP)
Jeremy D. Rosner, "The Know-Nothings Know Something," Foreign Policy (Winter 1995-96), No. 101, pp. 102-115 (CP)
Charles William Maynes, "A Closing Word," Foreign Policy (Spring 1997), No. 106, pp. 8-21 (CP)
2. The Media--- 3/16
Peter Brock, “Dateline Yugoslavia: The Partisan Press,” Foreign Policy (Winter 1993-94), No. 93, pp. 152-172 (CP)
Lloyd Cutler, "Foreign Policy on a Deadline," Foreign Policy (Fall 1984), No. 56, pp. 113-128 (CP- pending permission)
Garrick Utley, "The Shrinking of Foreign News," Foreign Affairs (March/April 1997), Vol. 76, No. 2, pp. 2-10 (CP)
MIDTERM EXAM---Thursday, March 18
IV. A Foreign Policy for the 21st Century
A. The Search for a General Framework--- 4/6, 4/8
Samuel P. Huntington, "The West and the World," Foreign Affairs (November/December 1996), Vol. 75, No. 6, pp. 28-46 (CP)
"The West: Precious, Not Unique," responses to Huntington, Foreign Affairs (March/April 1997), Vol. 76, No. 2, pp. 162-165 (CP)
Robert Kagan, "The Benevolent Empire," Foreign Policy (Summer 1998), No. 111, pp. 24-35 (CP)
Charles William Maynes, "The Perils of (and for) an Imperial America," Foreign Policy (Summer 98), No. 111, pp. 36-49 (CP)
Anne-Marie Slaughter, "The Real New World Order," Foreign Affairs (September/October 1997), Vol. 76, No. 5, pp. 183-197 (CP)
Madeline Albright, "The Testing of American Foreign Policy," Foreign Affairs (November/December 1998), Vol. 77, No. 6, pp. 50-64 (CP)
B. Refining the “Tools” of Policy: Military Force and Sanctions--- 4/13, 4/15
Edward N. Luttwak, "A Post-Heroic Military Policy," Foreign Affairs (July/August 1996), Vol. 75, No. 4, pp. 33 44 (P)
William E. Odom, "Transforming the Military," Foreign Affairs (July/August 1997), Vol. 76, No. 4, pp. 54-64 (CP)
Walter Clarke and Jeffrey Herbst, “Somalia and the Future of Humanitarian Intervention,” Foreign Affairs (March/April 1996), Vol. 75, No. 2, pp. 70-85 (P)
Richard N. Haas, "Sanctioning Madness," Foreign Affairs (November/December 1997), Vol. 76, No. 6, pp. 74-85 (CP)
Jesse Helms, "What Sanctions Epidemic?" Foreign Affairs (January/February 1999), Vol. 78, No. 1, pp 2-8 (CP)
C. Controlling Iraq--- 4/20, 4/22
Zbigniew Brzezinski, Brent Scowcroft, and Richard Murphy, "Differentiated Containment," Foreign Affairs (May/June 1997), Vol. 76, No. 3, pp. 20-30 (CP)
Janhangir Amuzegar, "Adjusting to Sanctions,"Foreign Affairs (May/June 1997), Vol. 76, No. 3, pp. 31-41 (CP)
Graham E. Fuller and Ian O. Lesser, "Persian Gulf Myths,"Foreign Affairs (May/June 1997), Vol. 76, No. 3, pp. 42-52 (CP)
Daniel Byman, Kenneth Pollack, and Gideon Rose, "The Rollback Fantasy," Foreign Affairs (January/February 1999), Vol. 78, No. 1, pp. 24-41 (CP)
D. The Challenge of China--- 4/27, 4/29
Richard Bernstein and Ross H. Munro, "The Coming Conflict with America," Foreign Affairs (March/April 1997), Vol. 76, No. 2, pp. 18-32 (CP)
Robert S. Ross, "Beijing as a Conservative Power," Foreign Affairs (March/April 1997), Vol. 76, No. 2, pp. 33-44 (CP)
E. The U.S., International Law and Adjudication: The War Crimes Issue --- 5/4, 5/6
David J. Scheffer, "International Judicial Intervention," Foreign Policy (Spring 1996), No. 102, pp. 34-51 (CP)
Theodor Meron, "Answering for War Crimes," Foreign Affairs (January/February 1997), Vol. 76, No. 1, pp. 2-8 (CP)
Ruth Wedgwood, "Fiddling in Rome," Foreign Affairs (November/December 1998), Vol. 77, No. 6, pp. 20-24 (CP)
John R. Bolton, "The Global Prosecutors: Hunting War Criminals in the Name of Utopia," Foreign Affairs (January/February 1999), Vol. 78, No. 1, pp. 157-164 (CP)
V. Conclusions---5/11
FINAL EXAMINATION- Friday, May 21, 2:00-5:00 P.M.
ASSIGNED TOPIC ESSAYS
Most of you will choose to write one or more of these essays. While assigned readings should be helpful and should be integrated into your argument where appropriate, you may well need additional library resources. Part of the exercise is for you to find them. Therefore, my advice will be limited, although I will be happy to help you think through and structure your argument. Also, be sure to use concrete examples to illustrate and support your argument. All papers must be typewritten (12-point font size), double-spaced, with one-inch margins, and 6-8 pages in length. (I am serious about these limits.) Each paper must be your own work and should include endnotes or footnotes and a bibliography in acceptable form. Papers are due in my office by 5:00 p.m. on the assigned date.
TOPIC #1- Due February 12
"It would be truer to say that this generation of Americans must shed the illusions of its fathers and grandfathers
and relearn the great principles of statecraft which guided the republic in its first decade....The intoxication with
moral abstractions,...which in our time has become the prevailing substitute for political thought, is indeed one
of the great sources of weakness and failure in American political thought."
---Morgenthau, In Defense of the National Interest, pp. 3-4
Respond to this quotation and the larger argument it introduces. Do you agree? Does the history of American foreign policy since 1952 make his argument more or less persuasive? Be specific and use at least three specific examples of U.S. foreign policy situations or initiatives to support your argument.
TOPIC #2- Due March 12
"Frankly, the Congress makes no positive contribution to United States foreign policy. Members of Congress know too little and are too narrowly self-interested to do anything but mess things up. Our goal, wherever possible, should be to limit Congressional impact on foreign policy."
---National Security Adviser X in a private meeting of the National Security Council
Respond. Be specific and use examples to support your argument.
TOPIC #3- Due April 23
“Despite its alleged position as the world’s “lone Superpower,” the reality is that the United States lacks the tools needed to exercise that power effectively. Military force is usable only where it brings no risk to American lives and sanctions simply don’t work.”
---Teacher Y
Respond. Be specific and use examples to support your argument.
TOPIC #4- Due May 7
“The time has come for the United States to learn to live with Saddam Hussein. The U.S. has neither the right nor the ability to tell the Iraqi people how they should be governed.”
---Foreign Policy Pundit Z
RESEARCH PAPERS
Students, particularly those intending to become candidates for Honors in Government, are encouraged to consider submitting research papers. Papers should be 15-20 pages in length and must be work done expressly for Government 270. They are due on April 30.
Research papers may be done on one of many topics related to U.S. foreign policy, although you should avoid subjects of primarily "historical" interest. All topics should be discussed with me as soon as possible. You must also submit, by February 19, a typewritten proposal that describes clearly the question or issue you would like to explore and outlines the approach you plan to take. It must also include a preliminary bibliography of at least 10 relevant sources. Like the assigned topic papers, research papers must be your own work and contain endnotes or footnotes and a bibliography in acceptable form.
STATE DEPARTMENT BRIEFINGS
Assignments
Students will be assigned to positions based, where possible, on their expressed preferences. Recent efforts to streamline the State Department have forced me, in a number of cases, to assign several countries to a single Country Director. (More consolidation may be necessary when I make the actual assignments.) Even with these changes there are still holes which I expect the regional and functional Assistant Secretaries to fill. The role of Assistant Secretary is probably more important than that of Country Director, but it also carries with it more responsibility.
Your duties are:
* to prepare a background paper (see below),
* to follow developments in your assigned areas throughout the term,
* to update the Secretary via email as developments in your area of responsibility warrant (see below). At a minimum, each of you must submit 4 such updates by May 7.
* to come to class prepared to discuss development in your area of responsibility, and finally
* to know where the Secretary of State is at all times!!
Background Reports
Each of you will prepare a 2-3 page report headed ultimately for the Secretary of State, although the timing, content and immediate recipient of your report will vary according to your position. These papers must be typewritten and will be graded on a credit/fail basis.
Each Country Director will submit a report to his/her Assistant Secretary outlining for the Assistant Secretary what he/she considers the single most important policy issue facing the United States in its relations with his/her country. It should also explain clearly and precisely the policy options available to the U.S. to respond to that issue. (Due: Feb. 9)
Each regional Assistant Secretary will read these reports and forward to the Secretary his/her own report, which will explain one of the issues raised by a Country Director and make a recommendation to the Secretary concerning any actions the U.S. ought to take. (Due: Feb. 16)
Each student in charge of a functional bureau or a quasi-independent agency and the Legal Adviser will write a report for the Secretary explaining what he/she considers the most important issue facing the U.S. in his/her area of responsibility. Reports should include a recommended course of action. (Due: Feb. 11)
Updates
As the term "briefing" suggests, I want your updates to be short, clear and to the point. Each should be between 100 and 250 words. Describe clearly what is happening, why it is important to the United States and what action, if any, you feel the U.S. should take. Follow the format suggested below. Briefings should be sent to the Secretary via email ('gov270').
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(Date)
Madam Secretary:
Situation:
Significance:
Recommendation:
Information sources:
(Your real name)
(Your State Department title)
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Regional Bureaus:
African Affairs- Assistant Secretary
Country Directors:
* Algeria-Libya-Morocco
* Angola-Mozambique-Zaire-Zimbabwe
* Ethiopia-Somalia
* Kenya-Tanzania-Uganda
* Ghana-Liberia-Nigeria
* Rwanda-Burundi
* South Africa
East Asian and Pacific Affairs- Assistant Secretary
Country Directors:
* Australia-New Zealand
* Cambodia-Laos-Thailand-Vietnam
* China
* Japan
* Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-Singapore
* South-North Korea
European and Canadian Affairs- Assistant Secretary
Country Directors:
* Belarus-Georgia-Kazakhstan-Ukraine
* Bosnia-Croatia-Slovenia-Yugoslavia
* Canada-Ireland-United Kingdom
* Czech Republic-Slovak Republic-Hungary-Poland-Romania
* Denmark-Finland-Norway-Sweden
* European Community
* France
* Germany
* Greece-Italy-Portugal-Spain
* Russia
Inter-American Affairs- Assistant Secretary
Country Directors:
* Argentina-Bolivia-Paraguay
* Brazil-Venezuela
* Chile-Ecuador-Peru
* Colombia-Costa Rica-Panama
* Cuba-Haiti
* El Salvador-Guatemala-Honduras-Nicaragua
* Mexico
Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs- Assistant Secretary
Country Directors:
* Afghanistan-Pakistan
* Egypt-Sudan
* India-Sri Lanka
* Iran
* Iraq
* Israel
* Jordan-Lebanon-Syria
* Saudi Arabia
* Bahrain-Kuwait-Oman-Qatar-United Arab Emirates
Functional Areas:
Assistant Secretary for Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs
Assistant Secretary for Economic and Business Affairs
Assistant Secretary for International Organization Affairs
Assistant Secretary for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs
Director, Bureau of Politico-Military Affairs
Director, Bureau for Refugee Programs
Director, Office of Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs
Legal Adviser
Quasi-Independent Agencies
Director, Agency for International Development
Director, Arms Control and Disarmament Agency
Director, United States Information Agency
PAST/CURRENT EXAMS