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Presidential Policymaking in Crisis Situations: 9/11 and Its Aftermath
Author(s) -
Crotty William
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
policy studies journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.773
H-Index - 69
eISSN - 1541-0072
pISSN - 0190-292X
DOI - 10.1111/1541-0072.00034
Subject(s) - presidential system , george (robot) , administration (probate law) , political science , chose , foreign policy , iraq war , political economy , missile , spanish civil war , public administration , international relations , crisis management , law , law and economics , sociology , politics , history , art history , archaeology
This paper compares the decision‐making approaches of two presidents, John F. Kennedy and George W. Bush, in relation to unanticipated international crises. One, President Kennedy, employed a broad body of expert opinion and entertained a wide range of options in meeting the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1963. The actions taken avoided a potential worldwide nuclear war. The other, George W. Bush, consulted only a few, like‐minded colleagues and appears to have decided early on that a war directed against Iraq and Saddam Hussein was a necessity. The administration's justifications for the war were difficult to prove and the administration chose an essentially bilateral (as against a multi‐lateral) approach. The Iraq War was won fairly easily, although its long‐range consequences remain unclear. The two styles of decision‐making present polarized approaches to international crisis situation management.