US National Security Policy
Provides a comprehensive introduction to the making of US foreign and national security policy. Examines the laws that guide policy-making, studies the actors and organizations involved in the inter-agency process, and explores how interaction between the executive, legislative, and judicial branches shapes policy development and implementation. Students acquire practical experience through policy writing and a crisis simulation. Designed for students interested in international relations, security, and public policy.
Fall 2023 · U.S. National Security Policy
This course provides a comprehensive introduction to the making of US foreign and national security policy. It examines the laws that guide policy-making, studies the actors and organizations involved in the inter-agency process, and explores how interaction between the executive, legislative, and judicial branches shapes policy development and implementation. Students acquire practical experience through policy writing and a crisis simulation. This course is designed for students interested in international relations, security, and public policy.
Readings
- [G] = Roger Z. George and Harvey Rishikof, editors, The National Security Enterprise: Navigating the Labyrinth , 2nd edition (Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 2017). ISBN: 9781626164406.
- Nikolas K. Gvosdev, Jessica D. Blankshain, and David A. Cooper, Decision-Making in American Foreign Policy: Translating Theory into Practice (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019), Chapter 9. ISBN: 9781108427142.
- Sam Sarkesian, John Allen Williams, and Stephen Cimbala, U.S. National Security: Policymakers, Processes & Politics (Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 2008), Chapter 4. ISBN: 9781588264169.
- James M. Lindsay, Congress and the Politics of U.S. Foreign Policy (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1994), Chapters 1 and 3. ISBN: 9780801848810.
- The Arab Spring: To Intervene or Not to Intervene
- The Courts in World War II
- Ole Holsti, “Crisis, Stress, and Decision-Making,” in American Defense Policy , eds. Peter L. Hays, Brenda J. Vallance, and Alan Van Tassel, 7th edition (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1997), 248–57. ISBN: 9780801854729.
- Irving Janis, “The Groupthink Syndrome,” in American Defense Policy , eds. Peter L. Hays, Brenda J. Vallance, and Alan Van Tassel, 7th edition (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1997), 258–61. ISBN: 9780801854729.
- Optional (but highly recommended)
- Joshua Rovner, Fixing the Facts: National Security and the Politics of Intelligence (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2011), Chapter 2. ISBN: 9780801448294.
- The 2003 Iraq War
- Robert Jervis, Why Intelligence Fails: Lessons from the Iranian Revolution and the Iraq War (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2011), Chapter 3. ISBN: 9780801447853.
- Murray Shoon and Anthony Quainton, “Combatant Commanders, Ambassadorial Authority and the Conduct of Diplomacy,” in Mission Creep: The Militarization of US Foreign Policy? , ed. Gordon Adams and Murray Shoon (Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 2014), 166–91. ISBN: 9781626161146.
- Edward Marks, “The State Department: No Longer the Gatekeeper,” in Mission Creep: The Militarization of US Foreign Policy? , ed. Gordon Adams and Murray Shoon (Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 2014), 235–53. ISBN: 9781626161146.
- Barak Obama, A Promised Land (New York: Crown, 2020), pp. 429–46. ISBN: 9781524763169.
- Scott Sagan and Kenneth Waltz, The Spread of Nuclear Weapons: An Enduring Debate, 3rd edition (New York: W.W. Norton), Chapters 1 and 2. ISBN: 9780393920109.
- Targeted Killings in the Global War on Terrorism
- Jan Klabbers, International Law , 3rd edition (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2021), 203–19. ISBN: 9781108487245.
Prerequisites & course information
Prereq: None Acad Year 2027-2028: Not offered Acad Year 2028-2029: U (Spring) 3-0-9 units. HASS-S
Sources
- Course catalogue ↗2026–2027
- MIT OpenCourseWare ↗Fall 2023
- MIT OCW readings ↗
- MIT OCW calendar ↗
- MIT OCW syllabus ↗
- Historical MIT OpenCourseWare offering. Named reading entries and schedule topics are automatically extracted from the linked source pages.