ABSTRACT

The US experience of the Vietnam War had a profound effect both on the US armed forces and the US in general. If the Powell Doctrine stands for one thing above all else, it is clarity. The debate surrounding the Powell Doctrine and the intellectual climate that led to it is part of a much wider debate about what the appropriate role for the world's only super power is or should be in international affairs. One cannot hope to find a more concise summation of the Powell Doctrine's call for public support and clear objectives except the Republican Senator from Kentucky misattributes where these ideas come from. The Powell Doctrine was an attempt to make sure that the mistakes made in the Vietnam War were not made again. But as demonstrated throughout this book, the questions it asks about the nature and circumstances under which the US should use military force remain worth asking.