Author: Ole J. Forsberg

Foreign Policy
The Transition Period (1866-1941)
Thus Far…
•	Chittick created a framework with which we can analyze and better understand foreign policies.
•	M/M: 
–	Multilateral/Unilateral
•	C/C:
–	Coercive/Non-Coercive
•	A/A:
–	Active/Reactive
Today…
•	Today we will examine the history of the United States between the Civil War and the Great War
–	How did events and reigning theories of government shape our foreign policy?
–	How did the president influence the foreign policy followed?
–	What factors are important in determining foreign policy?
FP Myth
•	American has traditionally had an isolationist foreign policy?

•	This is patently false
–	Indian Tribes
–	Latin Americas
–	The Caribbean Sea
–	The Pacific Ocean

•	However…
US Imperialism was different
•	How was territorial gain to be handled?
–	What mechanisms in the Constitution allowed for territorial gain?
–	
–	Jefferson had constitutional difficulties with the Louisiana Purchase difficulties
–	What constitutional difficulties would we have with Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines?
Constitutional Difficulties
•	How can we have anything other than a state?
•	What do we do with non-incorporated territories?
•	Can we purchase land?
•	Can we invade and keep the land?
–	Spoils of war?
•	Should we become engaged in European wars?
–	Should we enter as a balancer to help keep the peace?
The Concert of Europe
•	When the French Empire fell in 1815, it was dismembered
–	Congress of Vienna
–	Formalization of Balance of Power in intra-European relations
–	Concert of Europe
Century XIX in Europe
•	The rise to the forces of liberalization and nationalism
–	Unification of Germany (1848-1871) and Italy (1815-1871) as states
–	Two more states to help with the balancing
–	Kept these territories from automatically following another state
–	Allowed for more flexible balancing
•	The industrialization in the world
Century XIX in the US
•	Westward expansion
–	Manifest Destiny
–	Subjugation of the Indian Nations
–	Mexican-American War
•	Civil War and Reconstruction
•	Immigration
–	European
–	Asian
•	Industrialization
•	Wars
–	Spanish-American, Philippine-American, and the Great War
Post-Civil War Era (1865-1890)
•	Civil War was over
•	World was industrializing
•	Europe was busy with two new states: Germany and Italy
•	Concert of Europe still in effect
–	Focus on multipolar system and flexible alliances to keep the balance
•	We gained no territory through war
–	Purchase of Alaska in 1867
•	Our foreign policy was MCA
–	Why?
•	Prosperity
–	We were busy with Manifest Destiny and settling the American wilderness
•	Agricultural revolution and the Homestead Act (1862) drove the drive to the Midwest
–	In the urban centers, it was the start of the Gilded Age
•	We eventually surpassed the combined output of Great Britain, Germany, and France.
•	Security
–	Main use of military was to eliminate the Native American threat
•	Army strengthened
•	Navy faded
•	Community
–	Manifest Destiny drove the American psyche
–	Frontier Thesis (JW Powell)
–	Massive influx of European immigrants
•	Violence against non-Anglo–Saxon immigrants
•	America for Americans 
•	But, KKK disappeared in 1871
Pre-Great War Era (1890-1920)
•	The frontier was settled
•	The Frontier Thesis was shown wrong 
•	Our foreign policy was MCA (except for Wilson)
–	Why no change in designation, but big change in our actions?
•	This was the age of the Spanish-American War, the Philippine War, and the Great War
•	This was the age of American colonialism
–	We gained non-continental territory in this age
•	Cuba (1898)
•	Puerto Rico (1898)
•	Philippines (1898)
•	Guam (1898)
•	Hawaii (1898)
•	Samoa (1899)
•	Wake Island (1899)
•	Virgin Islands (1917 purchase)
–	BUT, what could we constitutionally do with any of it?
•	This was also the age of foreign interventions:
–	Mexico (Vera Cruz)
–	Colombia/Panama
–	Nicaragua
–	Haiti
–	Dominican Republic
–	The Banana Wars
•	Prosperity
–	The second half of the Gilded Age
–	Monopolies became extremely powerful engines of the economy
–	These required cheap natural resources
•	Latin America was close at hand
•	US policy towards LA focused on installing and supporting governments that were friendly with our MNCs
•	Security
–	Interventionism
•	Open Door Policy (China)
–	
–	Our versions of diplomacy in this period
•	Big Stick Diplomacy
•	Dollar Diplomacy
•	Gunboat Diplomacy
•	Community
–	The Progressive Movement began in 1890s and continued for at least two decades in response to the immigrants
–	The KKK was reborn in 1915 to deal with the immigrants
WWWD?
•	Wilson was different from his immediate predecessors
•	He was the quintessential follower of Idealism
–	National Self-Determination
–	Commitment to international institutions
–	MCA
•	BUT, how different was he from traditional US foreign policy?
From the Great War to the Great Depression
•	What was our foreign policy?
•	Our presidents were
–	Harding
–	Coolidge
–	Hoover
•	Our motto was: “The business of America is business”
•	We were living in the “Roaring 20s”
•	What kind of foreign policy should result?
Out of the Depression
•	What was our foreign policy?
•	Our president was
–	Franklin D. Roosevelt
•	We were working our way out of a depression
–	The depression was global, not national
–	The rise of totalitarian philosophies was also global
•	
–	Could democracy and capitalism survive?
Finally
•	Remember that we are using Chittick’s framework to better understand our foreign policies throughout the ages.
•	We have not always been “isolationist”
–	In fact, I cannot think of a time when we were
The Purpose of Theory
•	Chittick’s framework also exposes what he thinks are the most important things to look at when analyzing foreign policy
–	We also call this theory
–	Without theory to guide our thinking, we end up not thinking at all
•	Too many things happening in the world
The Purpose of Theory
–	Theory helps us answer the question: What should we focus on?
•	Does it matter if America is a wealthy state?
•	Does it matter that I prefer to wear Nikes?
•	What really matters?
Assignment
•	Read: 
–	Chapter 2 (Hook) 
–	Pages 116 – 133 (Chittick)

•	No class Wednesday
–	Mass of the Holy Spirit

•	Friday’s Topic: 
–	From Hot War to Cold War