The Impact of Public Opinion on U.S. Foreign Policy since Vietnam [Paperback]

Richard Sobel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2001 | ISBN-10: 0195105281 | ISBN-13: 978-0195105285

How strongly does public opinion affect the making of U.S. foreign policy? In The Impact of Public Opinion on U.S. Foreign Policy Since Vietnam, Richard Sobel provides a compelling answer to this provocative question that has long stirred spirited debate among scholars, activists, and policymakers. The book explains how public attitudes have affected the making of U.S. foreign policy. It also explores the tension between theoretical views of what the role of public opinion should be in a democracy and the actual historical records. Focusing on four of the most prominent foreign interventions of the last generation--the Vietnam War, the Nicaraguan contra funding controversy, the Persian Gulf War, and the Bosnia crisis--the book demonstrates that public opinion constrained but did not set American foreign policy. The cases provide detailed information on the events, public attitudes, and policies for each of these four major U.S. conflicts. Sobel supports his argument with insights drawn from the words of decision-makers in public statements, records, and memoirs, as well as from interviews with three former secretaries of state and four former secretaries of defense. The book also explores how public sentiment about a specific crisis emerges over time and how it is often tied to the climate of interventionist and noninterventionist opinion. Clearly written, The Impact of Public Opinion on U.S. Foreign Policy Since Vietnam is an essential text for courses in American government, public opinion, political behavior, and American foreign policy. It will also have strong appeal to scholars, policy makers, and general readers who are interested in gaining a deeper understanding of the politics behind the most significant conflicts of recent times.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Drawing on voluminous public opinion surveys and numerous interviews with senior policymakers, Richard Sobel illuminates the roles of public opinion on foreign policy by examining four cases-Vietnam, contra aid, the Gulf War, and Bosnia. His careful, balanced, and insightful account represents a major contribution to our understanding of the extent to which public opinion does and does not constrain foreign policymakers. In our day, as polls and focus groups proliferate, this is a timely and important book for scholars and public officials alike."--Roger B. Porter, Harvard University

"Based in scrupulous, objective scholarship, Richard Sobel's past work has been of high quality and has shown a keen desire to learn and benefit from the perspectives of policymakers. His well-received book on the contra aid controversy is characterized by an acute sense of the way political forces impinge on the policymaking process. This new book, explaining how public attitudes constrained foreign policy from Vietnam to Bosnia, continues his fine contributions to our understanding of the ways in which U.S. policymakers have perceived and been influenced by the public's preferences."--Richard H. Ullman, Princeton University

About the Author

Richard Sobel is a Political Scientist at Harvard University and Senior Research Associate of the Roper Center for Public Opinion Research at the University of Connecticut, Storrs.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (March 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195105281
• ISBN-13: 978-0195105285
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,082,902 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The public has a say in foreign policy, April 14, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Impact of Public Opinion on U.S. Foreign Policy since Vietnam (Paperback)

This book is a study of the influence of public opinion on foreign policy making during the Vietnam war, the contra aid controversy, the Persian Gulf war, and the Bosnia crisis. The public opinion research is based on polls and the policy research on statements of and interviews with the actual decision makers. The book shows how public opinion influences major decisions about interventions. It argues that public opinion limits but doesn't set intervention policy. Clearly and simply written, the book explains a major part of how democracy works in U.S. foreign policy. I enjoyed and learned a lot from reading it.

2 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Simplistic Analysis, May 27, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Impact of Public Opinion on U.S. Foreign Policy since Vietnam (Paperback)

This book does not add much to our knowledge of public opinion and foreign policy. It basically rehashes arguments that were made over 30 years ago by Key and Mueller. Given the accumulated knowledge of the Public Opinion subfield of Political Science, the author could have offered a great deal more insight. The book may be easy to read, but that is because there just isn't much of substance. If you want a quick reference to opinion poll results and self-serving statements by policy-makers, this book is for you. If you want to learn about public opinion, look elsewhere.