The Woodrow Wilson Center Press
A Creative Tension: The Foreign Policy Roles of the President and the Congress
Lee H. Hamilton and Jordan Tama
A Creative Tension is a unique look at the foreign policy roles of Congress and the president by one of the most astute congressional practitioners of foreign policy of recent decades, former U.S. representative and chairman of the House International Relations Committee Lee H. Hamilton. With an insider's perspective based on thirty-four years in Congress, Hamilton elucidates current domestic and international pressures influencing U.S. foreign policy, strengths and weaknesses in the foreign policy process, and ways to improve the performance of the president and Congress. A Creative Tension argues persuasively that better consultation between the executive and legislative branches is the most effective way to strengthen American foreign policy. This book should be of interest to foreign policymakers, scholars and students of American politics, and the general public.
Watch a Dialogue TV interview with Lee H. Hamilton---Foreign Policy: The President and Congress.
What People are Saying
"This is the best participant/practitioner work on the topic by far. There is a need for it, and the best feature is that it is by a highly respected participant in the congressional-executive relationship, Lee Hamilton."--James A. Thurber, Director, Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies, American University
Chapter List
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1 Introduction: New International Challenges and Opportunities
Chapter 2 Changes in the Making of Foreign Policy
Chapter 3 Continuities in the Making of Foreign Policy
Chapter 4 Consultation between the President and Congress
Chapter 5 Conclusion: Shaping a Twenty-First-Century Foreign Policy
Index