The Foreign Policy Disconnect: What Americans Want from Our Leaders but Don't GetWith world affairs so troubled, what kind of foreign policy should the United States pursue? Benjamin Page and Marshall Bouton look for answers in a surprising place: among the American people. Drawing on a series of national surveys conducted between 1974 and 2004, Page and Bouton reveal that—contrary to conventional wisdom—Americans generally hold durable, coherent, and sensible opinions about foreign policy. Nonetheless, their opinions often stand in opposition to those of policymakers, usually because of different interests and values, rather than superior wisdom among the elite. The Foreign Policy Disconnect argues that these gaps between leaders and the public are harmful, and that by using public opinion as a guideline policymakers could craft a more effective, sustainable, and democratic foreign policy. |
Contents
1 | |
Taking Public Opinion Seriously | 17 |
The Goals of Security and Justice | 38 |
Friends and Foes in the World | 74 |
Military Strength and the Use of Force | 100 |
Political Cooperation | 139 |
Economic WellBeing and Economic Justice | 174 |