ambassador
The head of a diplomatic delegation to a major foreign country
Bay of Pigs
Location of CIA-supported effort by Cuban exiles in 1961 to invade Cuba and overthrow Fidel Castro
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Agency primarily responsible for gathering and analyzing information about the political and military activities of other nations
Cold War
The 43-year period (1946 – 1989) during which the United States and the Soviet Union threatened one another with mutual destruction by nuclear warfare
containment
U.S. policy that attempted to stop the spread of communism in the expectation that this system of government would eventually collapse on its own
Department of Defense
Cabinet department responsible for managing the U.S. armed forces
embassy
The structure that houses ambassadors and their diplomatic aids in the capital cities of foreign countries
executive agreement
Agreement with foreign countries that requires only a presidential signature
foreign policy
Conduct of relations among nation states
foreign service
Diplomats who staff U.S. embassies and consulates
idealists
Those who say that U.S. foreign policy should be guided primarily by democratic principles --- the spread of liberty, equality, human rights, and respect for international law throughout the world
Iran-Contra affair
An allegedly illegal diversion of funds from the sale of arms to Iran to a guerrilla group in Nicaragua
iron curtain
Armed barrier during the Cold War that prevented movement across national borders between communist Eastern Europe and democratic Western Europe
isolationism
A foreign policy that keeps the United States separate from the conflicts taking place among other nations
Joint Chiefs of Staff
The heads of all the military services, together with a chair and vice-chair nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate
League of Nations
International organization created after World War I to settle international disputes; precursor of the United Nations
Monroe Doctrine
Policy that declared the Western Hemisphere to be free of European colonial influence (1819)
National Security Council (NSC)
White House agency responsible for coordinating U.S. foreign policy
"rally ‘round the flag" effect
The tendency for the public to back presidents in moments of crisis
realists
Those who say that U.S. foreign policy best protects democracy when it safeguards its own economic and military strength
secretary of defense
The president's chief civilian adviser on defense matters and overall head of the army, navy, and air force
secretary of state
Officially, the president's chief foreign policy advisor and head of the Department of State, the agency responsible for conducting diplomatic relations
Tonkin Gulf Resolution
Congressional resolution giving the president the authority to send troops to Vietnam
treaties
Official agreements with foreign countries that are ratified by the Senate
two-presidency theory
Theory that explains why presidents exercise greater power over foreign affairs than over domestic policy
U.S. v. Curtiss-Wright
Supreme Court decision in which Congress is given the authority to delegate foreign policy responsibilities to the president
United Nations
Organization of all nation-states, whose purpose is to preserve world peace and foster economic and social development throughout the world
War Powers Resolution
1973 congressional resolution requiring the president to notify Congress formally upon ordering U.S. troops into military action
Youngstown Sheet and Tube Co., v. Sawyer
Case in which the Supreme Court placed limits on the executive power of the president
