Week 9

Question 1

The Bay of pig’s invasion (Keenedy)

Answer 1

-Kennedy relied on the CIA and did not reach out to other sources
-Misinformation

Question 2

The Cuban Missile Crisis (Kennedy)

Answer 2

-this time Kennedy reached out to a wider group
-Changes
he absented himself from several of the earlier meetings
-When the president was present, he took special pains to elicit the views of lower-level advisers, for he had learned that “lower-ranking advisers … would not voluntarily contradict their superiors in front
of the President.
-The meetings were conducted without prearranged agenda so they could feel free to arise any issues

Question 3

The Vietnam War ( Johnson)

Answer 3

-Since his own energies were focused on the election campaign, he did not involve himself directly in these policy discussions, but accepted the recommendation that flowed from them, namely, a continuation of retaliatory strike.
-he failure cannot be attributed to Johnsons’ failure to reach out for information nor his unwillingness to push for examination of all points of view. The problem was the kind of information and advice that he was given.
-As a result of Johnsons attitude many aides were reticent about disagreeing with the president openly
-In addition to Johnson’s own failure to encourage an atmosphere conducive to
independent thinking, the apparent unwillingness to reassess our Vietnam policy
may have also been fostered by the development of “groupthink” among the president’s senior adviser.
Their relationships with each other appear to have become personal as well as professional.

Question 4

The Iran-Contra Affair (trading arms for hostages) (Reagan)

Answer 4

-Part of the blame can be laid at the doorstep of Reagan’s national security advisers, whose personal policy views over-rode their obligation to provide the president with as complete a base of information and advice as possible.
-The ultimate responsibility for this debacle, however, falls on the shoulders of President Reagan himself. Simply put, he failed to help himself secure the best possible information and advice needed to make an informed judgment.
Reagan ignored many facts just because he was only worried about the hostages.
-it was simply bad presidential judgment fueled by an overpowering impulse to free the hostages.

Question 5

Shoe Import Quotas (Carter administration and Ford)

Answer 5

-Relied on his advisors and missed the bigger picture

Question 6

Best Practice for presidential decisions

What are the consistent messages across DeClerico (and Quirk, too)
about decision making structures and practices?

Answer 6

-Consider being absent then back in during discussions and deliberation
-All perspectives
Good information and perspectives

-All presidents are diffent but there should be many points of views and agencies that they are getting their data from

Question 7

How about Hastie/Sunstein? What do they add to the mix, both in
terms of challenges and potential fixes