The Policy Makers in the US - Term Paper Example

Introduction According to the mythology and ethos in US, the is a reluctant leader. According to the mythology, U.S. was incomparable to other super powers (Bryson 770). The arrival of Americans in the new world, they were considered as European tyrannies. The Great European empires created colonies across the globe, establishing of world-class import-export infrastructure and performing in the ‘great intrigue game of the European intrigues. The earliest founders of power politics in America wished not to emulate laudable European politics. They instead established a unique system of governance to prevent accumulation of power in hands of a few. The constitution began as a compromise between the people who believed in central government with diffusion of power across the state and those who perceived the central government to be weak if diffusing its power across states (Bryson 771). Lyndon B Johnson became the 36th president in US. He served in all elected federal offices in US. He served as a democrat between 1937 and 1949, as a senator between 1949 and 1961. After assassination of President John Kennedy in 1963, Johnson took over the presidency. He won the support of Democratic Party. He designed the legislation on Great Society that saw the inclusion of the law that upheld the civil rights and fight on poverty. The bill on civil rights banned racial discrimination in the public facilities (Colman 34). American Ethos According to the ethos in America, U.S. was not to seek the leadership position in the world. However, it was providence or fate that forced America into a new role. The American ethos does not include of America becoming the worlds police. Nevertheless, events in history conspired in creating a bipolar world comprising of two superpowers competing on global governance structure (Segal 366). For instance, after President Truman informed the new responsibilities by America to the Joint Congress in 1947, the Soviets undermined the agreements. Currently, each nation has its own way of life, with the choices being free for anyone. Among the different preferences lie in freedom of religion and speech, free elections and free institutions among others. Remarkably, in a very short timeframe, the foreign policy in US and the world politics pivoted to internationalism from the isolationism if not interventionism. The U.S. was prompted to increase its massive military to survive the effects of WWII. As a result, there was intervention in US troops to take the forward positions in projecting the US power as well as deterring the Soviet tyranny. With the disappearance of the Soviet, U.S. had to maintain the same position, especially with the emergence of new tyrannies (Bryson 772). Lyndon Baines Johnson’s administration During his rule from 1963 to 1969, LBJ underwent divisive issues of foreign affairs which affected the objectives of a great society (Colman 35). The secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara, gave an outline of the ‘mutual assured destruction that assumed that all sides possessed enough nuclear weaponry for destruction. The graduated pressure dealt with Viet Cong mobility and increased the need for American troops in Vietnam. Johnson isolated Cuba after which he sent his troops to Dominican Republic to quell the takeover by communist in 1954 as well as to ensure defeat of Juan Bosch. The sponsoring of the assassination of Diem in 1963 by CIA made Vietnam become his great foreign policy challenge. Tonkin Gulf Resolution on 1964 allowed Johnson to Americanize Vietnam War and after a year, he Johnson initiated the “Operation Rolling Thunder’ which was a three year effort of massive bombing after an attack to the US base in Central South Vietnam that increased the Vietnamese casualties to at least 60,000. On the other hand, the course by America in Vietnam was altered after the casualties in United States convinced the administration lead by Johnson to attempt the diplomacy in Paris (Colman 36). The Lyndon Johnsons Dominican War Eric Foner outlines that Johnson stepped in to power with minimal experience in foreign policy. He opted in initial misgivings of sending the American troops in Vietnam. Nevertheless, this changed in 1964 after the Gulf of Tonkin incident when the Vietnamese vessels in the North discovered the American ship sent on a spy mission in the coast. Johnson claimed that the North Vietnamese fired the American vessel, hence, terming U.S. as a victim of the aggression. The Congress, in response, passed a resolution on Gulf of Tonkin by authorizing Johnson to take all measures necessary in repelling the armed attacks from the Vietnamese. However, the two senators; Wayne Morse from Oregon and Ernest Gruening from Alaska were opposed to the move by Johnson’s blank check. As a result, the resolution passed with no objection or discussion of the goals and strategy of America in Vietnam (Johnson and Christopher 56). In 1964, National Security Agency released secret documents that claimed on non-existence of North Vietnamese attack. During elections in 1964, Johnson claimed of having no intentions of sending the American troops. He, however, changed his mind quickly making the National Security Council recommend that America to start Airstrikes in Vietnam. He thereafter introduced the American troops in the South Vietnam (Johnson and Christopher 57). In 1965, Viet Cong attacked the American airbase in the south prompting Johnson to intervene through the ‘Operation Rolling Thunder in Dominican Republic where the military leaders had, in 1963, overthrown left-wing non-communist president. During the same period, some military men had attempted to restore the president Bosch to power. They were, however, defeated by junta. The fear of any unrest would have led to the same situation as it was in Cuba, and as a result, Johnson was compelled to dispatch over 22,000 American troops. Such an intervention outraged the Latin Americans. The war became more and more brutal with the American troops increasing to over half a million by 1968(Johnson and Christopher 58). This was characterized by American airplanes dropping million of bombs on small countries in the northern and southern sections of Vietnam. The bombs spread napalm chemicals that destroyed forests to expose the hiding places of Viet Cong. The chemicals were gelatinous gasoline that burned the skin. American used the ‘search and destroy’ tactic in pursuing the Vietnam and Viet Cong forces, a tactic that never distinguished civilians from combatants. The increased casualties unraveled a consensus by the foreign policy on Cold War since the war sidetracked the Great Society as well as destroying families, learning institutions and democratic parties. The opposition to this war united people from various places and this saw over 100,000 anti-war protestors assembling in Lincoln in Washington D.C. and placing flowers in rifle barrels of the soldiers that were guarding the American military(Colman 39). Conclusion The policy makers in U.S. depended on mythology of non-existence of feudalism with social class never being resonant in their experience. The mythology turns on the struggle by America to become an exhibit in self-government, something that was very scarce throughout the American Revolution. This enhanced focus on success versus the travails experienced by people in completing the experiment. The mythology focused more on trying of the experiment and setting it as an example to be followed by others. Therefore, most Americans perceived the world in simple terms. They believed in existence of global tyrants, and they considered that their main role was to thwart those tyrannies that threatened the American interests. Though the mythology was dominant in origin histories, remains a major component of the America ethos. Such ethos can be considered to have played a major role in the move by Lyndon B. Johnson in his military intervention during the Dominican Civil War. From the study, the entry of American troops in Dominican Republic as the president sided with loyalists where he feared that the defeat of Loyalists would create ‘second Cuba on American doorstep. As a result, the president was compelled to order American soldiers and marines to Dominican Republic as they believed that the support Loyalists would have brought immediate intervention and end the civil wars that were a major threat to their position as super powers as outlined by the American Ethos. Works Cited Johnson, Lyndon B., and Christopher Hutchinson. The Papers of President Lyndon B. Johnson Administrative Histories of the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidency: Foreign Affairs and National Security. Woodbridge, Ct: Primary Source Media, Gale Cengage Learning, 2009. Print. Colman, Jonathan. The Foreign Policy of Lyndon B. Johnson: The United States and the World, 1963-69. Edinburgh: Edinburgh UP, 2012. Print. Bryson, San Antonio. "Image Makers: Advertising, Public Relations, and the Ethos of Advocacy Weird Like Us: My Bohemian America Fashion and Its Social Agendas: Class, Gender, and Identity in Clothing." Psychiatric Services 53.6 (2002): 770-72. Print. Segal, Robert A., and William Hansen. "Handbook of Classical Mythology." Journal of American Folklore 121.481 (2008): 366. Print. Read More