The Policy Makers

Shaping American Foreign Policy from 1947 to the Present

Edited by Anna Kasten Nelson - Contributions by Lloyd Gardner; Walter LaFeber; John Prados; Steven L. Rearden; Chris Tudda and Patrick Vaughan

This book is about U.S. policy makers who have wielded enormous influence, largely behind the scenes, since the end of World War II. The advent of the Cold War brought new problems of national security for the United States. As a result, U.S. presidents no longer sat down with their secretaries of state to determine the nation's foreign policy. Instead, postwar chief executives reached out to individuals in the intelligence and military organizations and, increasingly, to advisers in the White House. The Policy Makers examines seven such advisers—from public servants in the state department to CIA directors and U.S. senators—and the policies each adviser influenced. By focusing on individuals whose policy making role was often unknown to the public, Anna Kasten Nelson and her contributors shed light on the myriad ways in which the postwar foreign policy of the United States has been shaped, sometimes in ways very damaging to the nation's security.

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Pages: 192 • Trim: 6⅜ x 9½

978-0-7425-5041-4 • Hardback • December 2008 • $143.00 • (£110.00)

978-0-7425-5042-1 • Paperback • December 2008 • $42.00 • (£35.00)

Subjects: History / United States / 20th Century

The Policy Makers

Shaping American Foreign Policy from 1947 to the Present

Hardback

Paperback

Summary

This book is about U.S. policy makers who have wielded enormous influence, largely behind the scenes, since the end of World War II. The advent of the Cold War brought new problems of national security for the United States. As a result, U.S. presidents no longer sat down with their secretaries of state to determine the nation's foreign policy. Instead, postwar chief executives reached out to individuals in the intelligence and military organizations and, increasingly, to advisers in the White House. The Policy Makers examines seven such advisers—from public servants in the state department to CIA directors and U.S. senators—and the policies each adviser influenced. By focusing on individuals whose policy making role was often unknown to the public, Anna Kasten Nelson and her contributors shed light on the myriad ways in which the postwar foreign policy of the United States has been shaped, sometimes in ways very damaging to the nation's security.

Details

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Pages: 192 • Trim: 6⅜ x 9½

978-0-7425-5041-4 • Hardback • December 2008 • $143.00 • (£110.00)

978-0-7425-5042-1 • Paperback • December 2008 • $42.00 • (£35.00)

Subjects: History / United States / 20th Century

Author

Anna Kasten Nelson is Distinguished Historian in Residence at American University where she teaches courses related to the history of American foreign relations.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Paul H. Nitze and NSC 68: Militarizing the Cold War
Chapter 2: "The Devil's Advocate": Robert Bowie, Western European Integration, and the German Problem, 1953–1954
Chapter 3: Walt Whitman Rostow: Hawk-Eyed Optimist
Chapter 4: Senator Henry Jackson and the Demise of Détente
Chapter 5: Zbigniew Brzezinski and Afghanistan
Chapter 6: The Wavemaker: Bill Casey in the Reagan Years
Chapter 7: Colin Powell: The Rise and Fall of the Powell Doctrine

Reviews

The debate on whether man makes history or history makes man is an enduring one, and it is one of utmost importance when analyzing foreign policy decision making. The main argument in this fascinating edited volume is that the answer is a variant of the former, that is, policies are formulated and shaped by men behind the scenes and in key decision-making positions, but this fact is combined with the famous saying "Where you stand depends on where you sit." . . . Provides a rich historical analysis of the nexus between policy and policymakers in recent U.S. foreign policy.
— Political Science Quarterly

A well-written, carefully reasoned, and highly provocative collection of essays on behind-the-scene makers of American foreign policy who sometimes wielded more influence than secretaries of state—should appeal to students and general readers alike.
— Howard Jones, research professory, University of Alabama