American Domestic and Foreign Policy

Domestic Policy

Domestic policy is the term used to refer to policies regarding issues that happen in the US. The main goal of domestic policy is to maintain and improve the quality of life for US citizens.

Domestic Policy Categories There are many different domestic policies, but the issues can typically be divided into five categories. These categories are: 1. Agriculture 2. Business and labor 3. Environment 4. Transportation 5. Social policy (which is policy that is focused on people).

Agriculture Federal agriculture policy is used to make sure that farmers are paid well for their crops. The federal government supports American farmers through the US Department of Agriculture.

Business and Labor Policies These policies encourage companies to expand by allowing them to pay less in taxes. The government also lends money to businesses to help them become established in the marketplace. Minimum wage is the result of one of the US policies regarding business and labor.

Labor Unions Labor unions are groups of workers that have banded together to ensure that they are treated fairly. These labor unions often negotiate with employers for fair wages and working conditions.

Environmental Policy Policies regarding environment are designed to protect and reclaim the nation’s land, air, and water resources. Policies are created that prevent individuals and businesses from putting toxins and chemicals into the environment.

Transportation Policy Transportation policies help to provide funding for roads. The Federal Highway Administration supervises all federal roads. The Urban Mass Transit Administration gives money to cities to help them improve their transportation systems.

Social Policy Social policies focus on people. Social policies deal with issues of education, public assistance, health, and housing. In other words, social policies deal with issues like health insurance, welfare, social security, and unemployment.

Social Security Social security is a social insurance program that provides economic assistance to persons faced with unemployment, disability, or old age. It is financed by taxes on employers and employees. Unemployment and distress caused by the Depression led to the Social Security Act of Revenues for old-age retirement security go into their own trust fund. Full benefits begin at age sixty-five for people born before 1938 and age sixty-seven for those born after that date.

Public Assistance Public assistance (what is commonly meant by the term welfare) is government aid to individuals who can demonstrate a need for that aid. It is directed toward those who lack the ability or resources to provide for themselves or their family. These programs have become entitlements (benefits to which everyone has a legal right and the government cannot deny). Four types of categorical assistance programs Old age assistance for the needy elderly Aid to the needy blind Aid to needy families with dependent children Aid to the totally and permanently disabled

Families on Welfare, Until 1996, the national government distributed funds to states in proportion to the number of people in each state with incomes below the federally-defined poverty level or threshold.

Health Care The United States is the only major industrialized nation without a universal health-care system. The U.S. system is a patchwork of programs designed to cover different segments of the population, but not all citizens. Government programs to provide health care include: Medicare, primarily for the elderly Medicaid, for the qualifying poor State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), for children in needy families.

When considering cost and access, roughly 15.2% of all Americans are uninsured. Medicare is a health-insurance program for all people aged sixty-five and older and a few individuals who are disabled or who suffer from end-stage renal disease. Part A of the Medicare program pays for care in facilities. Part B of the Medicare program pays for doctor’s services and outpatient hospital care. Participants of Part B pay a premium of twenty-five percent with the remaining costs paid for by the government. The most recent change in Medicare is the Medicare and Prescription Drug Modernization Act which created a new prescription drug coverage option. Medicaid is a need-based comprehensive medical and hospitalization program. The State Children’s Health Insurance Program is a health-insurance program designed to provide children in families with low incomes access to medical care.

Education Americans have traditionally believed that education could help individuals attain social and economic equality. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 was the first time the government provided direct aid to local school districts. Education is linked to national security and prosperity. Education reform is difficult, though particularly on the national level—as evidenced by the passage and implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act.

What is Foreign Policy? *Foreign policy is defined as the diplomatic policy of a nation in its interactions with other nations, but there are many aspects to a nation’s foreign policy, and many specific terms used. *A superpower is a state with a leading position in the international system and the ability to influence events and project power on a worldwide scale. US, USSR, British Empire (before Cold War) Brazil, China, EU, India, Russia (after Cold War)

Types of Foreign Policy Majoritarian politics (perceived to have widely distributed benefits and impose widely distributed costs) War Establishing military alliances with western Europe Interest Group politics Tariffs (help businesses, impose costs on other firms and unions) Ex: if the price of Japanese steel imported into this country is increased by tariffs, or quotas, it helps American steel companies and workers, but it hurts firms that had been purchasing the once-cheap Japanese steel. Client Politics Washington often provides aid to American corporations doing business abroad because the aid helps those firms directly without imposing any apparent costs on an equally distinct group in society.

The President’s Role 1845: James K Polk sent troops into Mexico to defend newly acquired Texas 1861: Abraham Lincoln blockaded southern ports and declared martial law 1950: Harry Truman sent American troops into S. Korea to help them repulse an attack from N. Korea. 1960’s: JFK and LBJ sent American forces into S. Vietnam without a declaration of war 1983: Reagan sent troops to overthrow a pro-Castro regime in Grenada

The President’s Role 1989: George HW Bush ordered invasion of Panama to depose dictator Manuel Noriega 1990: Bush ordered troops to Saudi Arabia in response to Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait 1999: Bill Clinton ordered the military to attack with bombs and cruise missiles Serbian forces that were trying to control Kosovo 2001: George W. Bush sent US troops to liberate Afghanistan from the Taliban 2003: The city of Baghdad was bombed

Worldviews in American Foreign Policy 1.Isolationism: Adopted after WWI because our efforts to help European allies had turned sour, lost thousands of American lives, and had not made the world “safe for democracy” as Woodrow Wilson had stated. This was very popular from the 1920’s to late 30’s. 2.Containment: Result of WWII/Pearl Harbor An attempt to build a network of defensive alliances in Europe and Asia to intervene with the spread of communism/ other corrupt governments (Korea, Vietnam, Eastern Europe)

3. Disengagement: aka “Vietnam” view, meaning entry into Vietnam, or any current entanglement, had/has led to a military defeat and a domestic political disaster. Considered an elitist viewpoint; thinking war is immoral and being reluctant to American military involvement elsewhere. 4.Human rights: Idea that the US should intervene in other countries’ affairs when human rights are being violated. Geneva conventions provide guidelines

Other Items that Shape Foreign Policy Economy (current “recession”) Environment Personal dogmas The United Nations (NATO, SALT, other international agreements/alliances)

Some questions to ponder… Do we support any nation that goes along with us, or only those that are reasonably free and democratic? (Pakistan, Argentina, Cuba, Russia, China) Are we the world’s policeman? We did not intervene to prevent China from occupying Tibet, to end the massacre of thousands of Tutsis in Rwanda. But we did intervene to try to end a dictatorship in Haiti, to help starving people in Somalia, to turn back an Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, and to punish Serbs who were attacking Kosovo… Why the bipolarity? Or are these decisions strategically made?

What do you think? These are a few highlights from John Perkins’s book Confessions of an Economic Hit Man. According to the author, “economic hit men are highly paid professionals who cheat countries around the globe out of trillions of dollars. They play a games as old as Empire but one that has taken on terrifying dimensions during this time of globalization.”

1974- Saudi royal family agrees to invest billions of dollars of oil income in US securities and to allow the US Dept. of Treasury to use the interest from those investments to hire US firms to build power and water systems, highways, ports, and cities in the kingdom. In exchange, the US guarantees the royal family will continue to rule.

1981- Ecuadorian president Jaime Roldos (who is against American oil interests) and Panamanian president Omar Torrijos (wants Panama Canal to be strictly under their rule) die in fiery airplane crashes that have markings of CIA assassinations. So events like this have shaped our foreign policy…

Or maybe… The US should not negotiate with communist countries such as Cuba, Colombia, and should also avoid relationships with unstable countries such as Iran and North Korea that want nuclear proliferation. The US was attacked out of the blue on 9/11 and had every right to invade Afghanistan to find and eradicate Taliban and Al Qaeda. In a continuing effort to secure the nation, the government believed that a pre-emptive strike was necessary in Iraq, a volatile dictatorship that has been known for its support of terrorist groups such as the Taliban and Al Qaeda.