Sample Essay On Mid-Term Exam

Hailed as the most monumental incident in the Cold War, the Cuban Missile Crisis is still valuable to review today for not only historic purposes, but for executive decision making in a time of crisis. Although, Robert F. Kennedy, the president’s brother and the Attorney General at that time, is often credited for his strong role in resolving the matter, the result clearly stemmed from all the parties involved. This includes the Cabinet and ExComm. Actually, in the two meetings between all the nation’s top political advisors on October 16, 1962, Robert Kennedy remained largely silent. He also initially favored a policy that was for a military strike against Cuba, partly to retaliate for what he saw as damage to his brother’s reputation from the Bay of Pigs incident one year earlier.
The president had six options he could employ. The first was do absolutely nothing as America faced the threat of Soviet missiles in other realms of the world. The second was to place diplomatic pressure on the Soviet Union to extract the missiles from Cuban soil. The third was to contact Fidel Castro and make him aware the United States was prepared to attack. The fourth was to unleash the U.S. Air Force and strike all areas were missiles were known to be. The fifth was a naval blockade to ensure no new military equipment was being placed in Cuba. The sixth and most extreme choice would be to invade Cuba to remove Castro from power. Ultimately, this decision was the president’s to make. However, his brother Robert was his closest advisor
and the members of ExComm as will the military also played a large role. The final decision came to hand from the combined efforts of all these men providing their input to the president so he could make the most informed choice. It was not the result of Robert Kennedy playing the major role. It was a team effort and proved the power of the checks and balances created by the Constitution. Also, it illustrated three personality traits of a president which are: judgment while in office, leadership in a time of crisis and execution of a plan.
Throughout the course of history, there have been many tremendous diplomats that created, employed and instilled policies that molded the course of relations for years to come. Diplomacy is defined as a series of interactions or relations between representatives of a state. For the United States, Presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson where the first diplomats to set the stage after freedom was obtained from Britain. This was a precarious time for this nation, as it must withstand pressure from Europe, place itself on stable ground and not be considered weak compared to its European colleagues. When Washington left office, he warned the country to be cautious when entering into foreign alliances. He felt the United States did not need to avail itself of Europe’s problems or patronage, especially in light of the aftermath of the French Revolution. He was the first to instill a policy of isolationism for the United States. Jefferson was more European in nature as he spent time over there representing the nation both prior to and during the Revolutionary War. His version of diplomacy was a bit more open ended, as Jefferson was very guarded about what the United States was willing to offer in exchange for alliances. In a way, he followed Washington’s viewpoint that strong associations of that nature should be avoided for the United States to grow on its own without becoming secondary to European countries. Europe had its own set of outstanding diplomats such as Richelieu, von
Metternich, Napoleon III and von Bismarck. Each man added to the course of history in how they conducted their affairs of state. Bismarck’s cold, calculated view of politics or realpolitik is still examined and enforced today.