CH 4 Domestic Politics and War VOCABULARY BUREAUCRACY the collection of organizations including the military the diplomatic corps and the intelligence agencies that carry out most tasks of governance within the state INTEREST GROUPS groups of individuals with common interest that organize to influence public policy in a manner than benefits their member RALLY EFFECT the tendency for people to become more supportive of their country s government in response to dramatic international events such as crises or wars DIVERSIONARY INCENTIVE the incentive that state leaders have to start international crisis in order to rally public support at home MILITARY INDUSTRAIL COMPLEX an alliance between military leaders and the industries that benefit from international conflict such as arms manufacturers DEMOCRATIC PEACE the observation that there are few if any clear cases of war between mature democratic states DEMOCRACY a political system in which candidates compete for political office through frequent fair elections in which a sizable portion of the adult population can vote ACCOUNTABILITY the ability to punish or reward leaders for the decision they make as when frequent fair elections enable voters to hold elected officials responsible for their actions by granting or withholding access to political office I Falkland Islands 1982 March30 1982 thousandsofArgentines demonstrated in Buenos Aires against the military government One week later thousands demonstrated in support of the regime What happened o On April 2 Argentine forces invaded the Falkland islands Did the Argentine government start this war to revive its popularity II War Model Review than war War is costly therefore there are available compromises better o There s ALWAYS a bargaining range Information and Credible Commitment Problems are why bargains fail o Incomplete information has an initiative to misrepresent The countries capabilities we want to misrepresent military strength strategy As well as the country s resolve the cost of war High resolve war not costly Low resolve war is very costly o With credible commitment there s no guarantee that once a deal is made it will be held This can happen when there s a change in power III Domestic Groups and War War may serve the interest of some domestic groups o These groups could differ from the national interest Groups may have narrow interest contrary to national interest o Narrow interests are those held by a relatively small number of actors within a country o Type of groups would be A particular business An ethnic minority group Individuals within government These groups may shape policy to support their narrow interest o Example Oil in the Middle East Whose interests matters The general population of Americans have an interest in ensuring stability in the Middle East in order to prevent oil price shocks that would hurt the economy Set against these views is one that see the pursuit of oil as benefiting a small group of businesses oil companies Its possible that the US foreign policy toward the Middle East is driven by these companies desire to expand protect their profit Firms then use their influence over policy makers to ensure that the US defends friendly regimes o Its easier for these groups to shape policy because they surpass the collective action problem Because the numbers of members are so small no one free rides and it s more organized o Domestic institutions determine how decisions are made therefore which actors interests are taken into account o Domestic interest and three kind of actors The leader makes the foreign policy Matter the most because they have the authority to make these decisions Groups within the country have sufficient organization and resources to influence the decisions made by the political leader Ex bureaucratic actors and interest groups General public free and fair elections provide individuals with a low cost way to participate in deciding who governs o Specialty interest matter for democracy but matter even more for non democracies IV Diversionary Way The leaders of states are not solely if it all looking out for the best interest of the nation they are also individuals with many varied interests of their own o Once in power they think how to secure their hold on it The Rally Effect o Rally around the flag o The idea that leaders can further their own political interest by fighting a war Causes people to become very supportive of their country s government o Often approval ratings jump up at the onset of a war or some other international crisis o Ex the most dramatic rally was following after 9 11 causing Bush to jump from 51 to 86 percent in approval voting o The existence of rally effects suggests that political leader may at times face a diversionary incentive a temptation to spark a crisis o Scholars have found little evidence to support this hypothesis that leaders systematically resort to force if they are in trouble domestically o Why do leaders not wag the dog War is risky can impose domestic political costs The benefits of war need to be very significant t outweigh the cumulative cost Do leaders wag the dog V Do countries fight wars to satisfy the military special interest groups Leaders of bureaucratic agencies often take policy stands that reflect their own organizations need o The military is the most influential bureaucratic actor in o Could make the argument then that the military has an matters of war and peace interest in promoting war But studies show the military is usually cautious and rarely the ones to want to use force This is because military pay a bigger cost if force is used Interest groups that organize around ethnic ties are another influence on foreign policy particularly in the US o US intervention in Latin American countries have often been ascribed to the influence of American business whose properties in those countries were at risk o Depending on where and how they do business economic actors can have interest in peaceful relations with some countries and or hostile relations with others Guatemala president takes American land US bombs then places with business friendly president There two kind of people when it comes to war o Hawks support war o Doves oppose war VI Institutions and War Features of democracies o Competing political parties candidates Important decisions in foreign policy o Liberal protects individual civil political rights Not all democracies Are democracies less prone to war o
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