Brent Scowcroft
Subtitle: internationalism and post-Vietnam war American foreign policy
By: David F. Schmitz
Series: Biographies in American foreign policy
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Published: 2011
Place of publication: Lanham, Md
Language: eng
Number of pages: 215
ISBN-13: 9780742570405; 9780742570429
Subjects: Internationalists; National Security Council (U.S.); Cabinet officers; Biography; Foreign relations
Description: As National Security Advisor to President Gerald Ford, advisor to President Ronald Reagan, and as National Security Advisor to President George H.W. Bush, Brent Scowcroft was at the center of the ongoing debate over how to shape American foreign policy in post-war world. As David Schmitz makes clear in his new biography, Scowcroft was a realist in his outlook on American foreign policy and an heir to Cold War internationalism that had shaped that policy since 1945. During his most important service, as George H.W. Bush's national security advisor, Scowcroft sought to work with like-minded Republicans and Democrats to construct a post-Cold War foreign policy that would provide consistency and stability to American policymaking in a rapidly changing international environment, defend the internationalist position from challenges and criticisms, and buffer the conduct of diplomacy from turbulence of domestic politics. The type of bi-partisan cooperation and internationalism that marked the pre-Vietnam War years served as Scowcroft's guide to how to defend American interests and promote U.S. values and institutions globally. While not always successful, Scowcroft provided a consistent internationalist voice in the midst of change--Publisher's description.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Chronology; title: Internationalism and post-Vietnam foreign policy; title: Accidental policymaker; title: Constructing a post-Vietnam War foreign policy; title: Internationalism under fire; title: Internationalism triumphant : the fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of the Cold War; title: The Gulf War and the new world order; title: Elder statesman.