Download “Civilizing With a Krag,” from In Our Image

History of American Intervention
International Relations 1443 SO1
Brown University
Fall 2015
Instructor: Stephen Kinzer
Office: Watson Institute, Room 308
Office Hours: Thursdays 10-12
Email: [email protected]
Course Description
This course reviews modern history through the study of invasions, coups, and other
interventions carried out or promoted by the United States. From the Marine assault on Tripoli
in 1805 to the bombing of Tripoli in 2011, there have been scores of these episodes. They have
shaped American history and the history of the wider world. We will examine a variety of them,
and try to answer three questions about each one.
(1) Why did the United States decide to carry out a particular intervention?
(2) How was the intervention executed?
(3) What have been its long-term effects?
From the study of individual interventions, we will try to find patterns and extract
themes. We will seek to explain what drives the United States to intervene in other countries,
what tools it has available for these interventions, and what lessons Americans can learn from the
successes or failures of intervention. We will also seek to apply what we have learned,
considering the prospects for future interventions and trying to estimate their chances for
success.
Class Format and Evaluation
This course will begin by examining the origins of American interventionism. We will
explore the impulses that led to the founding of the United States, and consider how these
impulses led many Americans to believe that their country should intervene in the affairs of
others.
From there we will trace the rise of the United States to world power. After discussing
the earliest interventions, we will devote considerable attention to the first burst of American
intervention abroad, studying the Spanish-American War and other events in the period
following 1898. Then we will proceed to the era of gunboat diplomacy in the early twentieth
century; clandestine interventions of the Cold War; and the modern age of invasions, including
those in Afghanistan and Iraq. We will conclude by considering prospects for future
intervention.
This course requires four short papers and a longer research paper. All except the
research paper should be about 1,500 words (five double-spaced pages).
The first written assignment, due September 26, is to be an essay on the origins of
American interventionism. It should address the questions of what drove the United States to
begin pursuing this course and what its early effects were.
A second paper, due October 15, is to analyze one of three documents that shaped United
States policy during the Cold War. In class we will compare the documents and analyze the
rationale they provide for the view that the United States should project its power globally.
The topic of the third paper, due November 17, will be announced at the November 10
class.
On December 9, a research paper about a specific intervention is due. This paper, which
is to be about 4,500 words (fifteen double-spaced pages), should address the three questions
posed on the first page of this syllabus. It should reflect independent reading and research. A
partial list of US foreign interventions is attached herewith. Choose one, or investigate another
with the instructor's permission.
Students should choose the topic of their research paper before mid-semester. On
November 10, a brief summary of the paper is due. It should include at least one paragraph
explaining how the paper will address each of the three questions that frame this assignment.
The last assignment will be a take-home final exam. Its topic will be announced at our
penultimate class on December 8. It will be due at the final class, on December 10.
Although this is a lecture course, active participation is encouraged. Three of our classes
will be discussions, marked with * on this syllabus. Students should come to class prepared to
discuss the career of John Hay on Sept. 26; Cold War documents on Oct. 15; and future
challenges for American diplomacy at our last class on December 10.
Grading will be based on this formula: fifteen percent for each of the four short papers
and forty percent for the research paper. Extra credit will be apportioned to students who offer
trenchant questions or observations.
Required Books
The Coup: 1953, The CIA, and The Roots of Modern U.S.-Iranian Relations, by Ervand
Abrahamian
The Savage Wars of Peace: Small Wars and the Rise of American Power, by Max Boot
Secret History: The CIA's Classified Account of Its Operations in Guatemala, 1952-1954, by
Nick Cullather
The War of 1898: The United States and Cuba in History and Historiography, by Louis A. Perez
Safe for Democracy: The Secret Wars of the CIA, by John Prados
Manifest Destiny: American Expansion and the Empire of Right, by Anders Stephanson
Required Articles and Book Excerpts
Baer, Robert, “The Seduction” and “Hard Landing,” from Sleeping With the Devil: How
Washington Sold Our Soul for Saudi Crude, pp. 73-90, 151-168
Berman, Karl, “All But One,” from Under the Big Stick: Nicaragua and the United States Since
1848, pp. 183-217
Freeman, Chas W., “The US and Saudi Arabia: A Marriage of Convenience On the Rocks?”
http://chasfreeman.net/the-us-and-saudi-arabia-marriage-of-convenience-on-the-rocks/
--“Too Quick on the Draw: Militarism and the Malpractice of Diplomacy in America”
--“The Incapacity of US Statecraft and Diplomacy”
Gaddis, John Lewis, “The New Cold War History: First Impressions,” from Now We Know:
Rethinking Cold War History, pp. 280-295
Jervis, Robert, “Understanding the Bush Doctrine,” in Political Science Quarterly, Vol. 118, No.
3 (2003), pp. 365-388
Karnow, Stanley, “Vietnam Is the Place” and “The End of Diem,” from Vietnam: A History, pp.
247-311
--“Civilizing With a Krag,” from In Our Image: America’s Empire in the Philippines, pp. 139166
Kennan, George, “The Sources of Soviet Conduct”
http://www.historyguide.org/europe/kennan.html
Kinzer, Stephen, “The Fella From Wall Street,” from The Brothers: John Foster Dulles, Allen
Dulles, and Their Secret World War, pp. 86-117
Kornbluh, Peter, “The Cuban Missile Crisis at 50,” in Cigar Aficionado, Nov./Dec. 2012
http://www.cigaraficionado.com/webfeatures/show/id/16772
Kushner, Howard I., “The Strong God Circumstance: The Political Career of John Hay,” in
Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society, Vol. 67, No. 4 (Sep., 1974), pp. 362-384
http://www.jstor.org/stable/40191317?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchText=john&sea
rchText=hay&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Djohn%2Bhay%26amp%
3Bfilter%3Djid%253A10.2307%252Fj50000398&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents
Lacey, Robert, “15 Flying Saudis” and “End of the Affair,” from Inside the Kingdom: Kings,
Clerics, Modernists, Terrorists and the Struggle for Saudi Arabia, pp. 225-236, 292-302
Langley, Lester D., and Thomas Schoonover, “The World of the Banana Men,” “Banana
Kingdoms,” and “The Central American Wars,” from The Banana Men: American Mercenaries
and Entrepreneurs in Central America, 1880-1930, pp. 33-90
Monten, Jonathan, “The Roots of the Bush Doctrine: Power, Nationalism and Democracy
Promotion in US Strategy,” in International Security, Vol. 29, No. 4 (2005), pp. 112-156
Muscant, Ivan, “Grenada 1983” and “The Panama Invasion 1989,” from The Banana Wars: A
History of United States Military Intervention in Latin America From the Spanish-American War
to the Invasion of Panama, pp. 370-417
NSC 68: United States Objectives and Programs for National Security, 1950
http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/nsc-hst/nsc-68.htm
Rasenberger, Jim, “D-Day: April 15-19, 1961” from The Brilliant Disaster: JFK, Castro, and
America’s Doomed Invasion of Cuba’s Bay of Pigs, pp. 189-312
Report on the Covert Activities of the Central Intelligence Agency [Doolittle Report], 1954
http://cryptome.org/cia-doolittle.pdf
Rosenberg, Scott, “Panama and Noriega: ‘Our SOB’”
http://history.emory.edu/home/assets/documents/endeavors/volume1/Scotts.pdf
United States Senate, “Covert Action in Chile” http://foia.state.gov/reports/churchreport.asp
Weiner, Tim, “In the Beginning We Knew Nothing,” from Legacy of Ashes: The History of the
CIA, pp. 3-70
Weissman, Stephen R, “An Extraordinary Rendition,” in Intelligence and National Security, Vol.
25, No. 2 (2010), pp. 198-222
Zimmerman, Warren, “The Favor of Fortune” and “So Brilliant and Aggressive a Man” in First
Great Triumph: How Five Americans Made Their Country a World Power, pp. 40-84, 188-229
Sequence of Classes
Sept. 10: Roots of American Foreign Policy; Settling North America; Barbary Wars
Sept. 15: Japan, Hawaii, and the Beginnings of Expansion in the Pacific
Reading: Stephanson, pp. 3-129; Boot, pp. 3-55
Sept. 17: Conflicts in Cuba and Puerto Rico
Reading: Perez, pp. 1-134
Sept. 22: Subduing the Philippines
Reading: Boot, pp. 56-128; Karnow, “Civilizing With a Krag” (posted)
Sept. 24: Consolidating Control of the Caribbean; Roosevelt and the Big Stick; Panama Canal
Reading: Langley and Schoonover, “Banana Kingdoms” and “The Central American
Wars;” Zimmerman, “So Brilliant and Aggressive a Man” (posted)
*Sept. 26: John Hay; Open Door to China
Reading: Zimmerman, “The Favor of Fortune;” Kushner, “The Strong God
Circumstance” (posted)
Optional: Taliaferro, John, All the Great Prizes: The Life of John Hay
DUE: Essay on the origins of American interventionism
Oct. 1: Return to the Caribbean; Rise of Woodrow Wilson; Punitive Expedition;
Boot, pp. 129-204
Oct. 6: Fighting Sandino in Nicaragua
Reading: Boot, pp. 231-252; Berman, “All But One” (posted)
Oct. 8: Good Neighbor Policy; Aftermath of World War II; Establishment of the CIA
Reading: Prados, pp. 78-96; Wiener, “In the Beginning We Knew Nothing” (posted)
Oct. 13: The Cold War; Rise of Eisenhower and John Foster Dulles
Reading: Gaddis, “The New Cold War History: First Impressions;” Kinzer, “That Fella
From Wall Street” (posted)
*Oct. 15: Cold War Documents
Reading: The 'X' Article: http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/23331/x/the-sources-ofsoviet-conduct
Doolittle Report: http://cryptome.org/cia-doolittle.pdf
NSC 68: http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/nsc-hst/nsc-68.htm
DUE: Essay on one of these documents
Oct. 20: Encounter With the Middle East; Coup in Iran
Reading: Abrahamian, pp. 81-226; Prados, pp. 97-107
Oct. 22: Economic and Strategic Motives for Intervention; Coup in Guatemala
Reading: Cullather, pp. 7-176; Prados, pp.107-123
Oct. 27: Emergence of Neutralism; Bandung Conference; Fomenting Civil War in Indonesia
Reading: Prados, pp. 162-183
Oct. 29: Challenges in Africa; Suez Crisis; Overthrow of Lumumba
Reading: Prados, pp. 273-282; Weissman, “An Extraordinary Rendition” (posted)
Nov. 3: Transition from Eisenhower to Kennedy; Rise of Cuba; Bay of Pigs Invasion
Reading: Prados, pp. 236-272; Rasenberger, “D-Day: April 15-19, 1961” (posted)
Nov. 5: Cuban Missile Crisis
Reading: Prados, pp. 298-336; Kornbluh, “The Missile Crisis at 50” (posted)
Nov. 10: Vietnam and the 1963 Coup Against President Diem
Reading: Prados, pp. 337-365; Karnow, pp. 240-311 (posted)
DUE: Summary of research paper
Nov. 12: Chile and the 1973 Coup against President Allende
Reading: Prados, pp. 396-430; U. S. Senate, “Covert Action in Chile” (posted)
Nov. 17: Campaigns Against Cuba; Invasion of Grenada
Reading: Musicant, “Grenada 1983” (posted)
DUE: Paper on topic to be announced
Nov. 19: Facing Guerrilla War in Central America: Nicaragua, Guatemala, El Salvador
Reading: Prados, pp. 507-571
Nov. 24: Invasion of Panama
Reading: Musicant, “The Panama Invasion 1989;” Rosenberg, “Panama and Noriega:
Our SOB” (posted)
Dec. 1: Invasion of Afghanistan
Reading: Prados 467-506
Dec. 3: Bush Doctrine; Invasion of Iraq
Reading: “Roots of the Bush Doctrine;” “Understanding the Bush Doctrine” (posted)
DUE: Paper on a specific intervention
Dec. 8: Vicarious Intervention: Saudi Arabia
Reading: Articles by Chas W. Freeman (posted); chapters from Baer and Lacey (posted)
Guest: Chas W. Freeman, former US Ambassador to Saudi Arabia
*Dec. 10: Adjusting to a Multi-Polar World; Foreign Policy Challenges in the 21st Century
DUE: Final exam
United States Interventions Since 1893 – Partial List
B. Harrison: Hawaii
McKinley: China (Boxer Rebellion – multilateral)
T. Roosevelt: Panama, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Philippines, Guam
Taft: Nicaragua, Honduras
Wilson: Haiti, Dominican Republic, Mexico (Veracruz), Mexico (Punitive
Expedition), Russia (multilateral), Cuba
Coolidge: Nicaragua
Eisenhower: Iran (with Britain), Guatemala, Indonesia, Lebanon, Vietnam,
Congo, Cuba
Kennedy: Cuba, Vietnam, Dominican Republic, British Guyana (with Britain),
Haiti, Laos, Tibet
Johnson: Vietnam, Dominican Republic, Brazil, Indonesia, Cambodia, Bolivia
(Che Guevara), Guatemala
Nixon: Vietnam, Cambodia, Chile, Angola
Ford: Cambodia (Mayaguez)
Carter: Iran (hostage rescue), Nicaragua (with OAS)
Reagan: Grenada, Lebanon, Libya (aircraft only), Nicaragua, El Salvador,
Honduras, Haiti
G. H. W. Bush: Panama, Somalia, Iraq (after Gulf War), Colombia (Escobar)
Cinton: Haiti (partly multilateral), Afghanistan (missiles) Iraq (missiles),
Bosnia (multilateral), Kosovo (multilateral), Colombia (Escobar)
G. W. Bush: Afghanistan (partly multilateral), Iraq (partly multilateral)
Obama: Libya (multilateral), Sudan (multilateral), Drone War