| Popis: |
The diploma thesis "Republican Foreign Policy and the War in Iraq" deals with the process of U.S. foreign policymaking from the perspective of the ruling Republican Party between 2003 and 2007. It tracks the development of the intraparty debate on the war in Iraq in reaction to the gradually worsening security situation in the country. It analyzes positions of various schools of thoughts within the American conservative movement and the changing configuration of power in American politics in the studied period. The thesis aims to explain why the Iraq policies of the Bush administration remained virtually intact up until January 2007 despite failing to deliver satisfactory results and what factors shaped this outcome of the conservative debate on Iraq. Three hypotheses are offered to answer the research questions. The first concerns President Bush's management style and the setup of the policymaking process within his administration. The second deals with the global war on terror narrative constructed in the aftermath of 9/11 and its impact on American political discourse. And the third analyzes the use of foreign policy and national security issues as an electoral wedge issue by the Republican Party. |
