LEADER 04492nam 2200649 a 450 001 9910462641203321 005 20200520144314.0 010 $a0-8157-2443-8 035 $a(CKB)2670000000358257 035 $a(EBL)1186368 035 $a(SSID)ssj0000873148 035 $a(PQKBManifestationID)11439496 035 $a(PQKBTitleCode)TC0000873148 035 $a(PQKBWorkID)10866297 035 $a(PQKB)11699701 035 $a(MiAaPQ)EBC1186368 035 $a(OCoLC)844939266 035 $a(MdBmJHUP)muse32285 035 $a(Au-PeEL)EBL1186368 035 $a(CaPaEBR)ebr10699900 035 $a(CaONFJC)MIL486996 035 $a(EXLCZ)992670000000358257 100 $a20130515d2013 uy 0 101 0 $aeng 135 $aur|n|---||||| 181 $ctxt 182 $cc 183 $acr 200 14$aThe road to war$b[electronic resource] $epresidential commitments honored and betrayed /$fMarvin Kalb 210 $aWashington, D.C. $cBrookings Institution Press$d2013 215 $a1 online resource (303 p.) 300 $aDescription based upon print version of record. 311 $a0-8157-2493-4 320 $aIncludes bibliographical references and index. 327 $aTruman's war in Korea -- The hatching of an American "commitment" -- Eisenhower: "My God, we must not lose Asia!" -- Kennedy: the coup that failed -- Johnson: "Let us continue" -- Nixon: "There is no way to win this war" -- One way or the other: getting out, finally -- "Honorable exit" or "decent interval" -- The Israel model: unprecedented and unpredictable -- Where are they now?. 330 $aNot since Pearl Harbor has an American president gone to Congress to request a declaration of war. Nevertheless, since then, one president after another, from Truman to Obama, has ordered American troops into wars all over the world. From Korea to Vietnam, Panama to Grenada, Lebanon to Bosnia, Afghanistan to Iraq --why have presidents sidestepped declarations of war? Marvin Kalb, former chief diplomatic correspondent for CBS and NBC News, explores this key question in his thirteenth book about the presidency and U.S. foreign policy. Instead of a declaration of war, presidents have justified their war-making powers by citing "commitments," private and public, made by former presidents. Many of these commitments have been honored, but some betrayed. Surprisingly, given the tight U.S.-Israeli relationship, Israeli leaders feel that at times they have been betrayed by American presidents. Is it time for a negotiated defense treaty between the United States and Israel as a way of substituting for a string of secret presidential commitments? From Israel to Vietnam, presidential commitments have proven to be tricky and dangerous. For example, one president after another committed the United States to the defense of South Vietnam, often without explanation. Over the years, these commitments mushroomed into national policy, leading to a war costing 58,000 American lives. Few in Congress or the media chose to question the war's provenance or legitimacy, until it was too late. No president saw the need for a declaration of war, considering one to be old-fashioned. The word of a president can morph into a national commitment. It can become the functional equivalent of a declaration of war. Therefore, whenever a president "commits" the United States to a policy or course of action with, or increasingly without, congressional approval, watch out --the White House may be setting the nation on a road toward war. 606 $aPresidents$zUnited States$xHistory$y20th century 606 $aPolitical leadership$zUnited States$xHistory$y20th century 607 $aUnited States$xMilitary policy$xHistory$y20th century 607 $aUnited States$xMilitary relations$zKorea (South) 607 $aKorea (South)$xMilitary relations$zUnited States 607 $aUnited States$xMilitary relations$zVietnam (Republic) 607 $aVietnam (Republic)$xMilitary relations$zUnited States 607 $aUnited States$xMilitary relations$zIsrael 607 $aIsrael$xMilitary relations$zUnited States 608 $aElectronic books. 615 0$aPresidents$xHistory 615 0$aPolitical leadership$xHistory 676 $a355.00973/0904 700 $aKalb$b Marvin L$0475934 801 0$bMiAaPQ 801 1$bMiAaPQ 801 2$bMiAaPQ 906 $aBOOK 912 $a9910462641203321 996 $aThe road to war$92443554 997 $aUNINA