The department of defense and the militarization of us foreign policy from Bush to Obama (2001-2017)

• Grant number: 17/25941-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• Start date: June 01, 2018
• End date: August 31, 2020
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Political Science - International Politics
• Principal Investigator: Cristina Soreanu Pecequilo
• Grantee: Clarissa Nascimento Forner
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia e Ciências (FFC). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Marília. Marília , SP, Brazil

Abstract

This doctoral project aims to analyze the participation of the department of defense in the US foreign policy decision making during the administrations of George W. Bush (2001-2009) and Barack Obama (2009-2017). Since its creation in 1947, the department of defense has expanded its foreign policy operations from budgetary and functional expansions to the overlapping of civilian agencies such as the State Department. This process, coupled with the increased military interventions of the US power throughout history, has led to political developments, such as the greater influence of military officers on decisions. These issues have contributed to the amplification of criticisms of the militarization of the country's foreign policy. The latter returned to debate after the September 11, 2001 attacks and the Bush administration's declaration of the global war on terror, which, despite taking other forms, continued in Obama's administration. Although militarization can be understood from several perspectives, the focus of this work is to explore its relationship with the factors that drive department of defense action, among which we identify structural elements such as the perception of American society on the use of force, the role of the United States in the international order, and the internal functioning of the American political system. From the observation of such elements, it is intended to broaden the understanding of the way in which the first presidents of the twenty-first century relate to the pillar of force and the role of force in the calculations of US hegemonic projection. (AU)

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

FORNER, Clarissa Nascimento. The Department of Defense and the militarization of US foreign policy from Bush to Obama (2001-2017). 2020. Doctoral Thesis - Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp). Instituto de Políticas Públicas e Relações Internacionais. São Paulo São Paulo.