George W Bush Presidency

While candidate George W. Bush promised a humble foreign policy, after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks President Bush implemented a highly ambitious and controversial foreign policy agenda. Examining the contentious decision to invade Iraq, the expansion of presidential power in foreign affairs, the apparent unilateralism that challenged established international norms, and the ideological underpinnings of Bushs foreign policy, many articles in this collection demonstrate why the administration proved to be so divisive domestically and internationally. However, other pieces in the collection show the Bush administration pursued more conventional approaches to certain international issues, such as the rising power of China and a nuclear North Korea. This collection thus both challenges some conventional views of Bushs foreign policy and provides a deeper understanding of why George W. Bush is viewed as one of the most controversial foreign policy presidents of the modern era.