Class notes
POLI 243 Lecture 6 Notes
- Course
- Institution
POLI 243 Lecture 6 notes
[Show more]
Seller
Follow
claudiageorge
Content preview
Lecture 6 - Jan 28th, 2019Bureaucratic Politics
Graham T. Allison, “Conceptual Models and the Cuban Missile Crisis” (1969)
Lecture Notes
Policymaking inside the Government - this level of analysis is referred to as bureaucratic
politics.
*Organizational process is distinct but is under the theory of bureaucratic politics.
The Origins of Bureaucratic Politics
Does the state act rationally?
- A counter to the structural realism assumptions that emerged in the 1960’s
- Is the assumption about states being rational unitary actors true?
- States actions often do not appear rational, because:
- A state pursues a mix of policies simultaneously
- Example: U.S. on tobacco - U.S. Dept. of Agriculture subsidizes farmers - U.S.
Surgeon General tells people not to buy it
- This is an inefficient way to implement policy: why pay for the production of a
product only to pay for advertising that discourages its use?
- If the assumption about rational unitary action is applied, this should not happen.
- Each parts of government pursues its own goal
- Bureaucratic policy emphasizes this
- U.S. tobacco example: the Dept. of Agriculture is acting rationally in
terms of its particular job (i.e. supporting American farmers), as is the
Surgeon General by advertising against the use of tobacco.
- Do these sum into a rational action?
Graham Allison on the Cuban Missile Crisis
Model I: System-level
- Makes an assumption about each state (i.e. the U.S., Soviet Union) being a single rational
unitary actor
- All policies carried out are a result of this actor
- Graham uses this model as a foil, in order to illustrate its ineffectiveness.
Model II: Organizational Process
- Highlights the disconnect that can occur between the policy-makers and what happens in
practice.
, - Bureaucracies tend to be unyielding
Model III: Bureaucratic Politics
- The decision making process, (i.e. when the policy is formulated), is a fight between the
different agencies, or bureaucracies, within the government. Each representative will
fight for their agency.
- This shapes the outcome of the policy → Examples from the Cuban Missile Crisis show
how this can happen and what the consequences look like.
The Cuban Missile Crisis
- Occured in 1962
- Why did it occur? Look at the 1950’s
- US had the upper hand in the Cold War (more advanced weaponry than the Soviet
Union)
- Soviet Union had nuclear bombs in Europe
- Soviet Union launched Sputnik - this indicates that a) they are perhaps more
technologically advanced than the US b) if a satellite can be put into space, so can a
weapon. The realization was that the Soviet Union had the capacity to launch a nuclear
bomb at the U.S.
- Term “missile gap” - why is the Soviet Union ahead of the US?
- Revolution led by Castro in Cuba
- Castro declared himself a communist, nationalized industries
- Aligned himself/Cuba with the Soviet Union
- Since Sputnik, the Soviet Union acted as though it had been producing nuclear weaponry
at a much faster rate than it actually was - in reality, they did not have the ability to
counter the U.S. effectively
- Soviet Union had 20-30 missiles
- Needed more/supplies equipment
- Cuba gave the Soviet Union the opportunity to launch missiles they could make: ones
that were short/mid range, which they could position for launch at the U.S.
- Missiles would only have to go 500-600 miles, rather than from one continent to
another.
- The Soviet Union knew the U.S. would not like this, so Kurshev hides this from Kennedy
- Ships/missiles are sent to Cuba discreetly (unloaded at night, etc)
- This activity was photographed by American U-2 spy plane
- American analysts recognized what the Soviets were doing
Organizational Process: policy decisions vs. policy implementation
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller claudiageorge. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $5.49. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
67096 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now