Reagan on War: A Reappraisal of the Weinberger Doctrine, 1980-1984

Notes

NOT E S Preface 1. Ronald Reagan, “Peace: Restoring the Margin of Safety,” Veterans of Foreign Wars Convention, Chicago, 18 Aug. 1980, The Public Papers of President Ronald W. Reagan, Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, http://www .reagan.utexas.edu/archives/reference/8.18.80.html (accessed 28 Aug. 2010). 2. Weinberger, Fighting for Peace, 441–42 [Weinberger’s emphasis]. 3. Richard Halloran, “U.S. Will Not Drift into a Latin War, Weinberger Says,” New York Times, 29 Nov. 1984. 4. J. William Fulbright and Seth P. Tillman, “Shultz, Weinberger Nondifferences ,” New York Times, 9 Dec. 1984 (online archive, accessed 3 Aug. 2006). Fulbright and Tillman used the term “Weinberger Doctrine” in their article, written eleven days after the secretary’s speech. Leslie H. Gelb referred to the concepts captured in the speech as “Mr. Weinberger’s defense doctrine.” “Weinberger ’s War Guide: Follow the Direct Route,” New York Times, 2 Dec. 1984. 5. Weinberger, Fighting for Peace, 434. 6. Kissinger, Diplomacy, 39. 7. Arthur S. Link, The Higher Realism of Woodrow Wilson and Other Essays (Nashville, TN: Vanderbilt University Press, 1971), 130. In a 1962 address to the Presbyterian Historical Society in Philadelphia, Link described President Wilson to his audience as a “supreme realist.” He explained: “A realist . . . is one who faces life and its situations without illusions, in short, one who can see realities or truth through the fog of delusion that normally shrouds the earth-bound individual.” Specifically, Link argued that Wilson’s view of both domestic political realities and the global situation was indicative of a “higher realism” because it was “more perceptive, more in accord with ultimate reality, more likely to win the long-run moral approval of societies professing allegiance to the common western, humane, Christian traditions.” This concept is very apt for describing President Reagan and many of the leaders in his cabinet as well. Chapter 1 1. Isaacson, “America’s Incredible Day,” 9. Also see Steven R. Weisman, “Reagan Takes Oath as 40th President,” New York Times, 21 Jan. 1981 (online archive, accessed 26 Jan. 2007); and James Reston, “Washington: Reagan’s 144 notes to pages 2 –4 Dramatic Success,” New York Times, 21 Jan. 1981 (online archive, accessed 26 Jan. 2007). 2. Deaver, Different Drummer, 84–85. Deaver actually had to wake up the president-elect. He remarked that he would never doubt Reagan’s ability to handle pressure. 3. Weinberger, In the Arena, 3–4. 4. Terence Smith, “A Weary Carter Returns to Plains,” New York Times, 21 January 1981 (online archive, accessed 26 Jan. 2007). 5. Ronald Reagan, “Inaugural Address,” 20 Jan. 1981, American Presidency Project, http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=43130 (accessed 20 Nov. 2007). In 1999 John Woolley and Gerhard Peters collaborated to establish The American Presidency Project at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Their archive contains over 76,000 documents related to the study of the presidency and was the primary source for the presidential speeches referenced herein. 6. Reagan’s message also contrasted sharply with Carter’s inaugural address given four years earlier: “We have learned . . . that even our great Nation has its recognized limits, and that we can neither answer all questions nor solve all problems. We cannot afford to do everything.” Jimmy Carter, “Inaugural Address,” 20 Jan. 1977, American Presidency Project, http://www.presidency .ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=6575 (accessed 20 Nov. 2007). 7. Carter’s address was the product of a remarkable twelve-day period in the history of his administration. The president had planned to give an energy speech to the nation on 5 July. Yet on 4 July he decided it needed to be broadened to include other national concerns. Therefore he scrapped the original text and called in advisors to help him pull together a domestic summit at Camp David. Over the next six days, 150 people were shuttled by helicopter from Washington for sessions of varying length with the president. The participants included governors, cabinet members, former defense secretaries, educators , union leaders, clergymen, bankers, and civil-rights leaders. Carter also left the confines of Camp David to visit the homes of two families in middle America. His decision to hold a summit and give a broader speech was not spontaneous. Instead, it was influenced by concern over opinion-poll numbers, which had been dipping since the winter, and concerns over the mood of the American public found by his pollster Pat Caddell in the spring. For a more detailed...