The Bush Doctrine

How did George W. Bush manage the War on Terror? Historians Howard Zinn and Victor David Hanson exchange essential perspectives on George W. Bush, the 2000 election, and the War on Terror. In 2000, after Clinton ended his presidency, George Bush and Albert Gore were set to compete for presidency. After the controversy of 2000 election, George W. Bush was elected 43rd president of the United States as a result of having 537 more electoral votes than Albert Gore. 9 months into Bush's presidency, the September 11th attacks transpired and caused Bush to fire back. Historians Howard Zinn and Victor Hanson interpret America’s issues. These historians observations can be differ and compared. Each proposition is similar yet, different as one is a

After about Nine months into presidency, George w. bush had formed the war on terror plan. It had been said that the plan was put into effect in retort to the terrorist attacks of 9/11. That it was formed to strengthen our national security at home and to extent democracy across the Middle East, but how can this be true when it seems that the United States has been proceeding to the dismay carried out by terrorists groups against innocent people in New York by killing even more innocent civilians within the Middle East. Tens of millions of civilians have died in the Middle East as a direct result of 9/11. Millions have been faced with injury, starvation, poor health and home displacement due to the inhumanity of the war.

On September 11th 2001, the United States was hit with a devastating blow when four commercial airplanes were hijacked by Al-Qaeda terrorist who deliberately crashed two of the planes into the World Trade Center complex, and a third plane into the Pentagon. The fourth plane, headed for Washington D.C., instead crashed in Pennsylvania. Nearly 3,000 lives were lost on this egregious day. In response, President George W. Bush waged the controversial “Global War on Terrorism” which turned out to be a self-inflicted wound for America, bleeding still today. Bush’s highly-criticized decision was inconsistent with the strategic principles of war.

A group of hijackers took control over four commercial jets flying out of the airport of the US. Two aircraft directed towards the direction of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center (WTC) in New York. All evidence that was found led to a radical Sunni Islamist group al-Qaeda being the culprit of 9/11. The attack represented a symbol; US’s power and influence collapsing like the Twin Towers, both having 110 floors collapsing causing extensive damaged to the area which surrounds them. Various other buildings were also destroyed in the wreckage of these towers. The total count of lives lost during 9/11 was close to approximately 3000 inclusive of the 19 who hijacked the plane. It was a record of lives loss based on the terrorist incident on US soil. The destruction of these two towers transformed the perspectives of the US forever, significant effect on world economic markets and confidence in the US immediately decreased. George W. Bush noted the horrific events of the attack as “evil, despicable acts of terror” (BBC 2001), causing fear amongst the people of the world leading to the change, in the face of terrorism

The September 11 assaults (often referred to as 9/11) involved a series of four organised terrorist assaults by the Islamic terrorist group Al-Qaeda in the United States on the Tuesday morning of, September 11, 2001. The assaults comprised of suicide attacks that were used to target popular U.S landmarks. This atrocity was carried out by 19 terrorists from the east coast of America, where they hijacked four airlines, which they later crashed into the twin towers in New York City. Two American airline planes: flight 11 and flight 175 crashed into the north and south towers of the World Trade Centre and within 2 hours collapsed also affected 10 other buildings located in the same vicinity. A third plane flew into the United States department of defence building, more commonly known as the Pentagon. Lastly the fourth plane steered towards Washington D.C, the passengers became aware about the other attacks and they tried to intervene, this caused the plane crash into a field near Pennsylvania. It was the deadliest incident for fire –fighters and law enforcement

On September 11, 2001, the Islamist terrorist group known as al-Qaeda launched a series of terrorist attacks on the United States of America, specifically in the New York City and Washington D.C areas. Nineteen al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four planes with the intention of using them as suicide attacks that would crash those planes into designated buildings, or targets. Two of the four passenger jets were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, both of which collapsed entirely within two hours of being hit. The third plane was crashed into the Pentagon, and the west side of the building, which is the

After the September 11 attacks, George W. Bush called for a war against Afghanistan in an effort to destroy terrorist organizations. In his statement on Military Order from 2001, Bush explains that if the United States did not use military action against these groups, then terrorists would continue to attack America or other countries and take even more lives (Bush). For Bush, war was the only answer in order to protect his country. Similarly, Vice President Richard Cheney advocated war in the Middle East. He remarked that the American government would target states that assisted terrorists or supported them, as well as individual terrorists. He also claimed that the war was effective as of 2003, and that the military had destroyed certain

Total devastation, thousands of lives lost, the worst terrorist attack in American history. On September 11th, 2001, Islamic terrorists had hijacked four American Airlines planes with the intentions to reign terror on the United States of America, two of the airplanes crashing into the Twin Towers, one into the Pentagon, and one in a field in Pennsylvania. Many people speculate that these attacks were the responsibility of Osama Bin Laden, especially after a recent report by news outlet Independent. To quote the article;

From its humble beginnings, the United States of America has expressed its intention to assist individuals who desired freedom by serving as an exemplar of liberty. Originally, Americans sought to preserve their republic by avoiding all foreign altercations and external constraints. At the dawn of the nineteenth century, in his first inaugural address Thomas Jefferson warned his audience of the potential dangers of foreign affairs by stating, “Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none,” pleading for a delicate balance between national security and commerce. This sentiment on foreign policy was reiterated on July 4, 1821, by Secretary of State John Quincy Adams when he said, “America does not go abroad, in search of monsters to destroy. She is the well-wisher to the freedom and independence of all.” At the dawn of the 21st century, the implications from Adam’s statement are no longer consistent with the demands of American national security. The key tenets of the Bush doctrine, democratization and preemption, have deviated from Adam’s vision and redefined United States foreign policy for the 21st century.

The policies that the United States has implement towards the War on Terror both conform and diverge from Machiavellian ideals in regards to foreign policy. Machiavelli states that to obtain and maintain power in a newly acquired state a ruler must “give offense…by imposing troops upon them”. The U.S. immediately acted towards this goal after the terrorist attacks in September 2001. The immediate action of the U.S. also correlate with the advice Machiavelli gives about the swiftness that must be taken to avoid war; “one should never allow a problem to develop in order to avoid war, for you end up not avoiding war, but deferring it to a time that will be less favorable”. By taking immediate action, the U.S. was able to take control of the situation at a time that allowed for the most support from the citizens of the U.S. along with other world powers. This was demonstrated by the surge of support that President Bush obtained immediately after the declaration of war.

The result of these mismatched priorities? A Harvard paper predicts that the combined costs of the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan now total $4-6 trillion (Blimes), including future disability and medical costs for veterans, and the Washington Post reports that the twin wars have killed a combined 6,648 American troops (“Faces of the Fallen”). The centerpiece of the Bush Doctrine resonates in the graves of Arlington National Cemetery, and our nation’s budget, but not in the foothills of Yemen or in the mountains of Pakistan, where the real threats reside.

President George Bush had only been president for eight months prior to the 9/11 attacks. Having to take on such a huge responsibility such as dealing with the attacks was very overwhelming, especially after his month long vacation in his home town of Texas. He came back soon to figure out that the one event would define his entire presidency. Following these horrific acts, many changes were made to the United States; most of them were the ones he had claimed to do in his memorable speech that unfortunate night. He tells the country that “Our military is powerful and it’s prepared” (Bush, paragraph 9)

On September 11, 2001, members of the terrorist group al-Qaeda hijacked four airplanes. At 8:45 in the morning, an American Airlines plane crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center. Hundreds of people were killed instantly, and hundreds more were trapped in the burning building. It was thought to be only a freak accident. Less than twenty minutes later, a United Airlines plane crashed into the south tower. It was no longer an accident, but an attack. Later on that morning the third plane hit the Pentagon, and passengers overtook the last plane and crashed it into a field in Pennsylvania. The combined damage from all four planes resulted in the deaths of over 3,000 people, and injuries to another 10,000. Only six people who were

On September 11, 2001, 19 terrorists who were members of the Islamic terrorist organization named al-Qaeda, hijacked four commercial airplanes and committed suicide attacks against the United States. Two of the planes were ran into the towers of the World Trade Center (Twin Towers) in New York City, a third plane hit the Pentagon just outside of Washington, D.C. The fourth plane crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. The attacks resulted in mass death and destruction, triggering the United States initiatives to fight terrorism and defend our country. Over 3,000 people were killed during the attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C., among these people were more than 400 police officers and 300 firefighters, these heros lost their lives

According to Lindsay (2011), President Bush’s foreign policy was dominated, first by the ‘war on terror’, and second by his ‘freedom agenda.’ This suggests that President Bush’s foreign policy was largely driven by ideology. Lindsay (2011:766) argues that during the war on terror “fighting terrorism became not just a priority, but the priority” of American foreign policy. The war on terror was the rationale behind America’s decisions to go to war with Afghanistan and Iraq. According to Lindsay (2011), America invaded Iraq without the approval of the UN which angered many of the United States allies. This suggests Bush let his ideological agenda dominate