Making war, thinking history : Munich, Vietnam, and presidential uses of force from Korea to Kosovo / Jeffrey Record.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Record, Jeffrey, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Presidents--United States--History--20th century.

Presidents.

Executive power--United States--History--20th century.

Executive power.

United States--Foreign relations--1945-1989--Decision making.

United States.

United States--Foreign relations--1989---Decision making.

United States--Military policy.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (217 p.)

Place of Publication:

Annapolis, Maryland : Naval Institute Press, 2002.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

In examining the influence of historical analogies on decisions to use--or not use--force, military strategist Jeffrey Record assesses every major application of U.S. force from the Korean War to the NATO war on Serbia. Specifically, he looks at the influence of two analogies: the democracies? appeasement of Hitler at Munich and America's defeat in the Vietnam War. His book judges the utility of these two analogies on presidential decision-making and finds considerable misuse of them in situations where force was optional. He points to the Johnson administration's application of the Munic

Contents:

Contents; Introduction; 1. Munich and Vietnam: Lessons Drawn; 2. Truman in Korea; 3. Eisenhower in Indochina; 4. Kennedy and Johnson in Vietnam and the Caribbean; 5. Nixon and Kissinger in Vietnam; 6. Reagan in Lebanon, Grenada, Central America, and Afghanistan; 7. Bush in Panama, the Persian Gulf, and Somalia; 8. Clinton in Haiti and the Balkans; 9. Legacies of Munich and Vietnam for the Post-Cold War World; 10. Using Force, Thinking History; Notes; Bibliography; Index; About the Author

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

1-61251-581-9

OCLC:

871776662