Enemies of the American Way

Why do presidents, when facing the same circumstances, focus on different threats to national security? Enemies of the American Way attempts to answer this question by investigating the role of identity in presidential decision making.

The book explains why presidents disagree on what constitute a threat to the US security via the study of three US presidencies in the 19th century (Cleveland, Harrison and McKinley). These case studies help draw a theory of threat identification to understand how and why specific actions are taken, including the decision to wage war. Using a constructivist approach, the book develops a rule-based identity theory to posit that American identity defines potential national security threats, i.e., how a policymaker defines Americans also defines the threats to Americans.

Enemies of the American Way offers a new means of understanding a key period when America rose to prominence in international relations while proposing a template that can be used to explain American foreign policy today. It will appeal to students of international relations and foreign policy.

Autorentext

David Bell Mislan is Assistant Professor in the U.S. Foreign Policy Program at American University's School of International Service. His teaching and research interests are foreign policy analysis, international security, and qualitative methods. In addition to his teaching and research, Dr. Mislan is active with civic engagement initiatives in Eastern Europe and the United States.

Inhalt

Introduction

1. Rule-Based Identity and Threat Identification
2. Alternate Approaches to Explaining Threat Identification
3. Grover Cleveland and Enemies of the American Way
4. The Person and Presidency of Benjamin Harrison
5. William Mckinley and Enemies of the American Way
6. Identity and Threat in the Post-Cold War Era
   Bibliography
   Index