ABSTRACT
The elimination of anti-communism and containment as the premier goals of US foreign policy and the erosion of domestic power has lead to a passionate debate among scholars and practitioners about the nature and course of US foreign policy. Although the debate on American foreign policy in the post-cold war era is varied, most of the discussion remains state-centered and continues along traditional arguments between global activism versus isolationism and realism versus idealism. The most striking aspect of the contemporary discussion is the salience of domestic issues and concerns on the goals and objectives of US policy. Although issues of international economic stability have always existed, they had not received extensive attention because of US preoccupation with the cold war. Primarily because the future of US prosperity and global influence will depend on steps to strengthen domestic economic performance, international economic issues are the premier new agenda item.
