A study of the basic tenets and ideologies behind America's policy towards Latin America during the Reagan-Bush administrations. Wiarda's insider account of this era serves as a link between the scholarly and policy-making communities. He supplements his analysis with various case studies.

This book examines the fundamental tenets and ideologies behind America's policy toward Latin America over the course of the last three administrations. Howard Wiarda, who has served as a consultant to the State Department, the Department of the Army, the National Security Council, the Kissinger Commission, and the White House, is ideally situated to provide an insider account of policy decisions and process during the Reagan-Bush era. The result is intended to be a volume that is extremely readable and will serve as a link between the scholarly and policymaking communities. Wiarda supplements his analysis of the role of the military in Latin America, shifting US strategic policy, democracy and human rights, and the problems presented by dictators in decline, with case studies of Mexico, Cuba, Nicaragua, South America, and the Caribbean. This text should be of interest to both scholars and students of American foreign policy and Latin American studies, as well as policymakers and analysts.