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Full-Text Articles in Public Administration
George W. Bush, Policy Selling And Agenda-Setting After 9/11, Gabriel Rubin
George W. Bush, Policy Selling And Agenda-Setting After 9/11, Gabriel Rubin
Department of Justice Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works
George W. Bush successfully set the agenda for an expansive, global war against terrorists after the 9/11 attacks. This agenda was not inevitable, it arose from an interpretation of events and of America’s adversaries that leaned on global conflict, cultural differences, and the presumption of evil intent. Bush’s speech-making successfully led to the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, civil liberty-reducing legislation, and a large institutional edifice dedicated to counterterrorism. The themes Bush’s speeches evoked and the agendas and policies that these speeches set are covered in this chapter.
How Can Presidents Properly Calibrate The Terror Threat?, Gabriel Rubin
How Can Presidents Properly Calibrate The Terror Threat?, Gabriel Rubin
Department of Justice Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works
Presidential rhetoric has minimally changed from the narrative set by George W. Bush after the 9/11 attacks. Bush’s policies and agenda have also largely remained. This chapter provides proposals for change given the empirical and theoretical findings made in the book. The counterterrorist policy agenda needs to be narrowed and made more precise. The public needs to educate itself about the terror threat to understand that it is not a significant risk when weighed against others. Presidents need to be more careful with what words they use when describing America’s terrorist adversaries and with who they call terrorists. Recalibrating the …