How is US Foreign Policy Developed?

The president, as chief diplomat, has the primary responsibility for the making of foreign policy. There are a number of agencies, aside from Congress, however, that play a large role in the making of foreign policy by providing information and resources to the president and Congress.

The National Security Council was created in 1947 to help with the coordination of military and foreign policy. The council "advises the president on 'the integration of domestic, foreign, and military policies relating to the national security (Cummings 552).'" The intent of the establishment of the council was also to provide "continuity from one administration to the next in the conduct of national security affairs (Cummings 552)." Various presidents have had different ways of utilizing the NCS.

The State Department, home of the secretary of state, handles communications between the secretary of state and American embassies all over the world. The secretary of state is, in theory, the principal foreign adviser to the president, but this role, and more importantly, level of power, differs depending on the secretary's personal relationship with the president (Cummings 553). The State Department oversees six geographic bureaus, each consisting of hundreds of country desks which handle a number of foreign policy subjects. Examples include economics, arms control, political-military affairs, consular affairs, and human rights (Cummings 553). The State Department includes the US Foreign Service which is responsible for the placement of diplomats representing the United States all over the world (Cummings 553).