From the "Red Juggernaut" to Iraqi WMD: Threat Inflation and How It Succeeds in the United States

Cavanaugh discusses three instances of threat inflation: early estimates of the Soviet threat; the escalation of the Vietnam War; and the US war against Iraq in 2003. These cases, he notes, are key because beyond their obvious importance, they were instances in which an administration had to make a...

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Published inPolitical science quarterly Vol. 122; no. 4; pp. 555 - 584
Main Author CAVANAUGH, JEFFREY M.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.12.2007
Academy of Political Science
John Wiley & Sons, Inc
Oxford University Press
Subjects
Air forces
Analysis
Antiterrorism measures
Cold War
Cold wars
Communism
Decision making
Defence policy
Estimates
Evaluation
Executive branch
Executive-legislative relations
Foreign Policy
Foreign relations
Government
Government agencies
Government bureaucracy
Inflation
Influence
Intelligence gathering
Intelligence service
International aspects
Iraq
National Security
Perceptions
Political aspects
Political parties
Public administration
State Society Relationship
Terrorism
Threat
Threats
U.S.A
United States
United States of America
Vietnam War
War
War planning
Weapons of mass destruction
United States
Vietnam
Iraq
United States > US
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics > USSR
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Summary:Cavanaugh discusses three instances of threat inflation: early estimates of the Soviet threat; the escalation of the Vietnam War; and the US war against Iraq in 2003. These cases, he notes, are key because beyond their obvious importance, they were instances in which an administration had to make a substantive case on foreign policy to the people and Congress on national security grounds. They are examples of manipulation because the information presented stood in marked contrast to information held privately, giving the impression that administration policies stood a good chance of success or that alternatives were dangerous and impractical.
Bibliography:ArticleID:POLQ609
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JEFFREY M. CAVANAUGH is an assistant professor of political science and public administration at Mississippi State University. His current research focuses on U.S. foreign policy and the dynamics of patron—client networks in the interstate system.
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ISSN:0032-3195
1538-165X
DOI:10.1002/j.1538-165X.2007.tb00609.x