Why Did the United States Invade Iraq? PDF
Preview Why Did the United States Invade Iraq?
Why Did the United States Invade Iraq? This edited volume presents the foremost schol arly thinking on why the United States invaded Iraq in 2003, a pivotal event in both modern US foreign pol icy and inter na tional politics. In the years since the US invasion of Iraq it has become clear that the threat of weapons of mass destruction was not as urgent as the Bush administration pre- sented it and that Saddam Hussein was not involved with either Al Qaeda or 9/11. Many con sider the war a mist ake and question why Iraq was invaded. A majority of Amer icans now believe that the pub lic were deliberately misled by the Bush admin- istration in order to bolster support for the war. Public doubt has been strength- ened by the growing number of criti cal schol arly ana lyses and in- depth journ al istic investigations about the invasion that suggest the administration was not candid about its real reasons for wanting to take action against Iraq. This volume begins with a survey of private schola rly views about the war’s origins, then assesses the current state of debate by organ izing the best recent thinking by foreign pol icy and inter na tional relations experts on why the United States invaded Iraq. The book covers a broad range of approaches to explaining the Iraq War – the role of the un cer tainty of intelligence, cognitive biases, ideas, Israel, and oil, highlighting areas of both agreement and disagreement. This volume will be of much intere st to students of the Iraq War, US foreign and security pol icy, strategic studies, Middle Eastern pol itics, and IR/Security Studies in general. Jane K. Cramer is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Oregon. Her research focuses on the causes of national overestimations of security threats, as well as other aspects of the do mestic pol itics behind foreign pol- icymaking, especially the diversionary theory of war. A. Trevor Thrall is Associate Professor of Government and Politics and directs the Biodefense gradu ate program at George Mason University. Much of his work focuses on the intersection of war, news, and pub lic opinion. His recent work has investigated pres id en tial threat inflation, pub lic support for missile defense, and how changes in the news media have affected US foreign policy. Routledge Global Security Studies Series Editors: Aaron Karp, Regina Karp and Terry Teriff Nuclear Proliferation and International Security Edited by Morten Bremer Maerli and Sverre Lodgaard Global Insurgency and the Future of Armed Conflict Debating fourth- generation warfare Terry Terriff, Aaron Karp and Regina Karp Terrorism and Weapons of Mass Destruction Responding to the challenge Edited by Ian Bellany Globalization and WMD Proliferation Terrorism, transnational networks, and international security Edited by James A. Russell and Jim J. Wirtz Power Shifts, Strategy, and War Declining states and international conflict Dong Sun Lee Energy Security and Global Politics The militarization of resource management Edited by Daniel Moran and James A. Russell US Nuclear Weapons Policy after the Cold War Russians, ‘rogues’ and domestic division Nick Ritchie Security and Post- Conflict Reconstruction Dealing with fighters in the aftermath of war Edited by Robert Muggah Network Centric Warfare and Coalition Operations The new military operating system Paul T. Mitchell American Foreign Policy and the Politics of Fear Threat inflation since 9/11 Edited by A. Trevor Thrall and Jane K. Cramer Risk, Global Governance and Security The other war on terror Yee- Kuang Heng and Kenneth McDonagh Nuclear Weapons and Cooperative Security in the 21st Century The new disorder Stephen J. Cimbala Political Economy and Grand Strategy A neoclassical realist view Mark R. Brawley Iran and Nuclear Weapons Protracted conflict and proliferation Saira Khan US Strategy in Africa AFRICOM, terrorism and security challenges Edited by David J. Francis Great Powers and Strategic Stability in the 21st Century Competing visions of world order Edited by Graeme P. Herd The Globalisation of NATO Intervention, security and identity Veronica M. Kitchen International Conflict in the Asia-P acific Patterns, consequences and management Jacob Bercovitch and Mikio Oishi Nuclear Proliferation and International Order Challenges to the Non-P roliferation Treaty Edited by Olav Njølstad Nuclear Disarmament and Non-P roliferation Towards a nuclear- weapon-free world? Sverre Lodgaard Nuclear Energy and Global Governance Ensuring safety, security and non- proliferation Trevor Findlay Unipolarity and World Politics A theory and its implications Birthe Hansen Disarmament Diplomacy and Human Security Regimes, norms and moral progress in international relations Denise Garcia Causes and Consequences of Nuclear Proliferation Edited by Robert Rauchhaus, Matthew Kroenig and Erik Gartzke Why Did the United States Invade Iraq? Edited by Jane K. Cramer and A. Trevor Thrall Regional Powers and Security Orders A theoretical framework Edited by Robert Stewart-Ingersoll and Derrick Frazier Why Did the United States Invade Iraq? Edited by Jane K. Cramer and A. Trevor Thrall First published 2012 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2012 Jane K. Cramer and A. Trevor Thrall for selection and editorial matter; individual contributors, their contributions The right of the editors to be identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging- in-Publication Data Why did the United States invade Iraq?/[edited by] Jane K. Cramer and A. Trevor Thrall. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Iraq War, 2003–Causes. 2. Iraq–Strategic aspects. 3. United States–Foreign relations–2001–2009. I. Cramer, Jane K. II. Thrall, A. Trevor. DS79.757.W49 2011 956.7044′31–dc22 2011011709 ISBN: 978-0-415-78212-8 (hbk) ISBN: 978-0-415-78213-5 (pbk) ISBN: 978-0-203-80456-8 (ebk) Typeset in Baskerville by Wearset Ltd, Boldon, Tyne and Wear Contents List of tables ix Notes on contributors xi Acknowledgments xiii 1 Introduction: why did the United States invade Iraq? 1 JANE K. CRAMER AND A. TREvOR THRALL 2 Explaining the war in Iraq 25 ROBERT JERvIS 3 Ideas, American grand strategy, and the war in Iraq 49 COLIN DUECK 4 Ideas and entrepreneurs: a constructivist explanation of the Iraq War 73 ANDREW FLIBBERT 5 Explaining the Iraq War: the Israel lobby theory 101 JEROME SLATER 6 Neoconservatism and American hegemony 114 MICHAEL LIND 7 Blood for oil, in Iraq and elsewhere 129 MICHAEL T. KLARE 8 Oil and the decision to invade Iraq 145 JOHN S. DUFFIELD viii Contents 9 Tony Blair nurtures the special relationship 167 JANE M. O. SHARP 10 In pursuit of primacy: why the United States invaded Iraq 201 JANE K. CRAMER AND EDWARD C. DUGGAN Index 245 Tables 1.1 Factors behind the de cision to invade Iraq 4 1.2 Private administration beliefs about Iraqi WMD 5 1.3 The role of 9/11 6 1.4 Amer ican pub lic beliefs about the war in Iraq 6 1.5 What factors influenced the decision- makers? 8 1.6 Who influenced the de cision to invade? 10 4.1 The role of ideas in the Iraq War 81 10.1 The neocon ser vat ive scorecard 225
The list of books you might like
