American Foreign Policy

A comprehensive understanding of the flow of information is critical for the success of foreign policy and government affairs in general. This is only possible through transparency between branches of the government and between the state and the public. Transparency acts as a mechanism that prevents the abuse of power on an international level – it should be what political leaders strive for when managing information. Although transparency works to ensure accountability, it doesn’t always benefit national interests. Considered to be one of the least transparent avenues of interstate relations, foreign diplomacy is a fragile ecosystem of values that must be carefully balanced. Secrecy – in both diplomacy and the use of force – is sometimes necessary

The American foreign policy process does not always function as effortlessly as Huntington makes it seem. David Fagelson contends that certain aspects of the foreign policy process “undermine the capacity for democratic control […] and disputes over the distribution of power of national security powers sometimes obscure the identity of the true adversary” (277). The fundamental purpose of the Constitution is political accountability yet the gradual expansion of presidential power, especially in covert affairs, has made accountability more difficult. Congress has the authority to raise and spend revenue; such authority acts as a powerful tool for managing governmental action. There are two constitutional provisions that indirectly allow for covert operations: the first authorizes private individuals to engage in military actions against foreign governments and the second requires Congress to make the accounting of public funds available to the public “from time to time” (Fisher 267). Consequently, this promotes the use of secret funding which can have negative reverberating effects, as it does not allow for a thorough understanding of the flow of

Sometimes, however, too much secrecy can result in public mistrust especially if screw-ups are discovered later. A certain level of public trust in a democracy’s foreign policy process is necessary because “without confidence in what public officials say and do, laws are easily twisted to satisfy” personal or partisan agendas (Fisher 231). Because public discourse can influence the goals of domestic politics, thereby shaping foreign policy, a public discourse of distrust reflects a lack of popular control. As such, transparency regarding the goals of a state’s foreign policy should be the political norm. A state must always assume that its involvement will eventually be discovered. The more secretive and ambiguous American involvement appears, the larger the consequences it may have on international relations. Transparency and honesty is particularly critical when responding to things brought to light. Huntington’s somewhat amoral approach to foreign policy is unsustainable because of international norms – norms the United States largely worked to create. Ultimately, such an approach undermines America’s credibility in the eyes of both foreign and domestic