Presidential Leadership in Foreign Policy-Making Research Paper

Presidential Leadership in Foreign Policy-Making
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Presidential Leadership in Foreign Policy-Making
Introduction
The nature in which the US government conducts itself internationally remains vital and scintillating in almost every aspect. Foreign policy is defined by historians and scholars in international relations as the guiding principles of a country's behavior on foreign countries meant to safeguard a country’s relationships and interests (Tetlock, 2019). The US foreign policy was structured with a primary aim of fostering security and prosperity, with the employment of various strategies such as diplomacy, wars, alliances, and trade. The two World Wars drastically changed the approaches to foreign interventions. The US government opted for a robust military in a bid to deter other foreign nations from undermining peace and the welfare of American citizens, with Gorge W. Bush adding the option of pre-emption as a way to respond reactively to foreign enemies. Foreign policy strategies have since evolved, with the focus on the economy, human rights, and environment preservation coming into play.
Aside from military and diplomacy, there have been other deeds aimed at strengthening foreign policy. These deeds have come in form of economic aids, support for humanitarian organizations, bilateral and multilateral treaties, and sometimes taking part in arbitration and negotiation for the sake of realizing peace in a foreign nation. The American Constitution outlines the key players in the foreign policymaking, influence, and implementation. Right from the grass-root level, economic, ethnic, and humanitarian groups influence foreign policymaking. Next up is the Congress and the bureaucrats that make up the multiagency team of the Central Intelligence Agency, National security Council, Homeland Security, Joint Cheifs, the Department of State, and Defence. At the core of foreign policymaking and implementation is the president. The presidents take part in treaty negotiations, assert the advice from other key players on foreign policy, not to mention the fact that they appoint ambassadors that carry out diplomatic duties in foreign countries. Military and economic activities are undertaken under the president's command.
President's Role
A careful and in-depth understanding of the president as the Commander-in-Chief (CiC) of the armed forces reveals that the presidents’ liberty lies on international boundaries more than with the domestic boundaries. As the CiC, the president has authority over military actions, one of the tools used to implement foreign policies in a case diplomacy fails (Waxman, 2018). Congress has some influence on the military through the budget. It is also liable for declaring an act of war. Despite the limitation by Congress, some US presidents have authorized military attacks on foreign nations without its consent, justifying their action with the fact that they are the CiC and thus have autonomy on how the military acts.
The constitution also grants the president powers to sign treaties and agreements with foreign nations provided that he or she can garner support from at least two-thirds of the senate. The treaties and agreements can be of diversifi...