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George H. W. Bush: “One Nation under God”

Gary Scott Smith

in Religion in the Oval Office: The Religious Lives of American Presidents

George H. W. Bush was raised in a devout Episcopalian family and remained affiliated with this denomination for almost all his life. However, Bush’s theology and social policies had more in common ... More

George H. W. Bush was raised in a devout Episcopalian family and remained affiliated with this denomination for almost all his life. However, Bush’s theology and social policies had more in common with evangelicals than with more liberal Protestants. Bush’s faith was very important to him and helped shape a number of his presidential policies. He continually exhorted Americans to seek God’s aid to deal with the nation’s challenges and problems. No other chief executive argued as often as Bush that the United States was “one nation under God” and was accountable to Him. Bush frequently accentuated faith, morality, service, and family values. He maintained generally cordial relations with many leading evangelicals by supporting the sanctity of life, voluntary school prayer, religiously based child care, and parental control of education. Bush’s faith substantially influenced his policy in the Persian Gulf in 1990 and 1991, most notably Operation Desert Storm’s liberation of Kuwait.Less

War and Its Aftermath

Michael F. Cairo

in The Gulf: The Bush Presidencies and the Middle East

Continuing from the previous chapter, this chapter examines George H.W. Bush’s and George W. Bush’s decisions related to the course and conclusion of the Persian Gulf War and Operation Iraqi Freedom. ... More

Continuing from the previous chapter, this chapter examines George H.W. Bush’s and George W. Bush’s decisions related to the course and conclusion of the Persian Gulf War and Operation Iraqi Freedom. It begins by focusing on George H.W. Bush’s decision to launch Operation Desert Storm. Discussing the challenges posed by possible Israeli retaliation and Soviet diplomacy, the chapter illustrates George H.W. Bush’s skilful use of diplomacy. Next, the chapter turns to Operation Iraqi Freedom and George W. Bush. Emphasizing the challenges posed by events in Iraq, the chapter demonstrates the “cowboy” liberal approach of George W. Bush. The chapter ends by comparing George H.W. Bush’s decision to stop short of Baghdad with George W. Bush’s decision to topple Saddam Hussein’s regime. Throughout, the chapter emphasizes the role of each president’s worldview in contributing to these decisions and policies.Less

Iraq: The Twenty Years’ War

John Tirman

in The Deaths of Others: The Fate of Civilians in America's Wars

This chapter examines the consequences of America's invasion of Iraq in 2003, particularly the death of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and the displacement of millions of others. It considers the ... More

This chapter examines the consequences of America's invasion of Iraq in 2003, particularly the death of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and the displacement of millions of others. It considers the rationale for the Iraq War, including America's attempt to eradicate Islamic militancy and terrorism, to protect friends and allies in the region, and to stop Iraq from producing weapons of mass destruction. It argues that oil was the primary motivation for the U.S. invasion of Iraq. It also discusses Operation Desert Storm that was launched by America in 1991 to free Kuwait from Iraq. In addition, the chapter assesses other measures adopted by the United States and its allies to bring down Saddam Hussein, such as sanctions, no-fly zones, and political isolation. Finally, it looks at U.S. President George W. Bush's launch of a “war on terrorism” in response to the 9/11 attacks by al Qaeda and the American public's attitude toward the Iraq War.Less

‘The Lawyers’ War’: Slow Violence in Iraq

Craig Jones

in The War Lawyers: The United States, Israel, and Juridical Warfare

This chapter analyses the involvement of military lawyers in the planning and conduct of the US-led First Gulf War in 1990–1991. Contrary to representations of the First Gulf War as one of the ... More

This chapter analyses the involvement of military lawyers in the planning and conduct of the US-led First Gulf War in 1990–1991. Contrary to representations of the First Gulf War as one of the cleanest, most precise, and limited wars the US military has ever fought, this chapter outlines the planning process and rationale behind the US military’s destruction of Iraq’s key infrastructure. The laws of war and military lawyers played no small part in the patterning of violence as key legal interpretations turned ‘dual use’ infrastructures into legitimate military targets—with cascading collateral consequences for civilian life in Iraq. The chapter considers how calculations of proportionality failed to properly consider the ‘slow violence’ of targeting, which enabled and legitimized forms of infrastructural violence and military destruction that might otherwise be considered impermissible.Less

Invading Iraq

Wallace J. Thies

in Why Containment Works: Power, Proliferation, and Preventive War

This chapter evaluates the positions taken and the arguments made by observers of Saddam Hussein's Iraq during the decade-long interval between the end of Operation Desert Storm in 1991 and the start ... More

This chapter evaluates the positions taken and the arguments made by observers of Saddam Hussein's Iraq during the decade-long interval between the end of Operation Desert Storm in 1991 and the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom (the US invasion of Iraq) in 2003. It focuses on the clash of views between those who believed that Hussein's Iraq could not be contained at a reasonable cost as long as Saddam himself remained on the scene (containment pessimists), and those who believed that containment was both feasible and sustainable, because the great disparity in resources between the United States and Iraq meant that the United States could pressure Iraq for years to come, if need be, without resorting to drastic methods, such as withdrawal or a resort to open warfare (containment optimists). To buttress their case, containment pessimists argued that containment could not be counted on to last indefinitely because of the asymmetry between what was at stake for Saddam and his regime, and for the United States and its allies, in the years after Iraq's defeat in the first Persian Gulf War (1990–91). For Saddam Hussein and the rest of his repressive apparatus, the stakes were nothing less than survival. Optimists, on the other hand, conceded that containment was not perfect, but in their view perfection was not needed to bring down Saddam and his regime.Less

Enemies Abroad

in Us Against Them: Ethnocentric Foundations of American Opinion

This chapter, which investigates whether ethnocentrism predisposes Americans to lend their support to policies of confrontation and violence against outside enemies, analyzes ethnocentrism in the ... More

This chapter, which investigates whether ethnocentrism predisposes Americans to lend their support to policies of confrontation and violence against outside enemies, analyzes ethnocentrism in the current and ongoing war on terrorism, the Cold War during the second half of the twentieth century, and Operation Desert Storm in 1991. The analysis provides evidence that ethnocentrism is a primary ingredient in the American public's support for forcefully confronting adversaries abroad.Less

Iraq: Fighting for Market Power

Stephen E. Gent and Mark J. C. Crescenzi

in Market Power Politics: War, Institutions, and Strategic Delay in World Politics

This chapter examines how the motivation to establish market power in the oil export market influenced Saddam Hussein’s decision to invade Kuwait in 1990. In the wake of the costly Iran-Iraq war, ... More

This chapter examines how the motivation to establish market power in the oil export market influenced Saddam Hussein’s decision to invade Kuwait in 1990. In the wake of the costly Iran-Iraq war, Hussein desperately needed access to new resources. By controlling Kuwait’s oil production, Iraq could both augment its own oil resources and prevent Kuwait from overproducing and putting downward pressure on the price of oil. Relatively unconstrained by low levels of economic dependence and a lack of acceptable institutional solutions, Hussein turned to violence to pursue his market power goals. A subsequent invasion of Saudi Arabia would have given Iraq a sufficient market share to be able to control the global output and price of oil. To prevent such a shift in market power, a coalition of forces led by the United States intervened militarily and drove Iraqi forces out of Kuwait.Less

Manned Aerial Bombing

Neil C. Renic

in Asymmetric Killing: Risk Avoidance, Just War, and the Warrior Ethos

This chapter explores the asymmetry-challenge of manned aerial bombing. It first provides a historical overview of the practice, beginning in the nineteenth century and concluding with the 1999 ... More

This chapter explores the asymmetry-challenge of manned aerial bombing. It first provides a historical overview of the practice, beginning in the nineteenth century and concluding with the 1999 high-altitude bombing of Operation Allied Force (OAF). The chapter will then examine, and distinguish between, the ethical and moral opposition that emerged in response to civilian bombing. This opposition will then be reconsidered in the context of the First Gulf War and OAF. It is within these conflicts that we witness a shift in the locus of the asymmetric-challenge of aerial bombing, from civilian to combatant targeting. The chapter concludes by exploring the gradual resolution of the asymmetry-challenge of manned aerial bombing.Less

A Theory of Legitimate Defense

George P. Fletcher and Jens David Ohlin

in Defending Humanity: When Force is Justified and Why

This chapter focuses on Article 51 of the UN Charter concerning self-defense and examines the concept of legitimate defense. It discusses the concept legitimate defense as an extensive interpretation ... More

This chapter focuses on Article 51 of the UN Charter concerning self-defense and examines the concept of legitimate defense. It discusses the concept legitimate defense as an extensive interpretation of self-defense in the Charter. In addition, it looks into the distinction of understanding and interpretation of various nations of self-defense and the problems that it carries. The chapter also investigates on whether nations have the inherent or natural right to defend not only themselves but other states that are subject or aggression. It cites Operation Desert Storm by the Bush administration as an example.Less