ABSTRACT
Bill Clinton wanted to adopt Franklin Roosevelt’s style of making decisions, which meant a style of management under which deliberations where Clinton listened as his advisors debated issues in front of him. However, Clinton was not the type of individual who could passively sit by listening as his advisors argued for different positions, instead his style was to be an active participant in the formulation and deliberation of policy. Formally, the Clinton national security infrastructure was fairly simple in organization. Clinton’s foreign policy team was comprised of seasoned veterans with a significant portion being former members of the Carter administration. The task for Clinton and his foreign policy team was to develop policy toward Bosnia that went beyond mere pre-election rhetoric. Deliberations among Clinton’s principal advisors continued into April with the president attending several meetings early in the month. The collegial structure/low centralization decision-making process is represented in Clinton’s efforts to find an effective policy toward the conflict in Bosnia.
