ABSTRACT
The Vietnam War traumatized much of America, greatly weakened the Cold War domestic consensus, and left a legacy that largely discouraged presidents from Gerald Ford to Bill Clinton from undertaking major ground combat. Whereas George Bush did employ a US-led coalition to forcibly eject Saddam Hussein from Kuwait in 1991, Operation Desert Storm’s goal was strictly limited to restoring Kuwaiti sovereignty in the aftermath of a classic act of aggression. The Iraq War that was initiated in 2003 (Operation Iraqi Freedom) has divided the American public more deeply than any confl ict since Vietnam, signifi cantly eroded the domestic consensus that arose in the wake of 9/11, and threatens to leave a legacy that will deter future presidents from seeking to forcibly impose regime change on other nations.
