The U.S. Administrations, the Public Opinion, and the War on Terrorism: A Two- Level Game Comparative Analysis of the Wars on Afghanistan and Iraq (2001-2021) | ||||
| مجلة كلية الآداب - جامعة القاهرة | ||||
| Volume 2024, Issue 7, July 2024 | ||||
| DOI: 10.70216/2682-485X.1611 | ||||
 View on SCiNiTO | ||||
| Author | ||||
| Wafaa Adnan Darweesh Alaradi | ||||
| Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, College of Social Sciences, Kuwait University | ||||
| Abstract | ||||
| Objective: This paper aims to analyze the strategies and tactics employed by successive U.S. administrations in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq from 2001 to 2021. Specifically, it focuses on the administrations of George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden. By examining the decision-making processes, public opinion, and partisan divides, this study seeks to understand the complexities and challenges faced by these administrations in conducting the war on terrorism. Time line: The timeline for this analysis begins with the 9/11 attacks and concludes with the U.S. Army's withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. Methodology: This paper uses comparative descriptive analysis. This will help analyze two- level game: 1. The state level administrations and partisanship. 2. the American public opinion towards the war on terrorism. Results and discussion: The findings and discussions reveal that the different administrations exhibited varying approaches. Bush, for example, acted swiftly and decisively in response to the immediate threat of terrorism, gaining unanimous consent to launch the war in Afghanistan. However, this unanimity was lost during the war in Iraq, yet Bush still pushed forward with the decision. Obama subsequently led the strategies in Afghanistan and oversaw the withdrawal from Iraq, although he didn't personally oversee the withdrawal from Afghanistan. It was during his administration that Osama bin Laden was assassinated, and the withdrawal from Iraq in 2011 was a significant priority. Trump took a different approach, particularly in his dealings with the Middle East, Iran, the aftermath of the "Spring" in Egypt, the GCC-Qatar crisis, and the establishment of a peace declaration between the U.S. and the Taliban regime. This ultimately paved the way for the Biden administration to withdraw troops from Afghanistan in 2021. These findings underscore the absence of political and public consensus in foreign policy conduct, as well as the partisan nature of the strategies employed by different administrations. Key words: U.S. administrations, War on Terrorism, Afghanistan, Iraq, Public Opinion, Decision- making, Partisan divides. | ||||
| Keywords | ||||
| U.S. administrations; War on Terrorism; Afghanistan; Iraq; public opinion; Decision- making; Partisan divides | ||||
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