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Foreign troops still police Kosovo's ethnic

power, but the latter is elusive. Even suppress-

groups, and only physical separation keeps

ing political violence is far easier, and requires

them at peace where the troops are not.

far less control, than convincing people to

Proponents of state-building like Condoleezza

form a government and obey its laws. The

Rice point to the post-World War II occupa-

functioning of a modern state requires the

tions of Germany and Japan as examples to

participation of millions of people who show

emulate.50 But those occupations relied on

up for work, pay taxes, and so on. People do

these things because they believe in a national

conditions the U.S. military could not recreate

idea that organizes the state or because they

in Iraq: wars that shattered the fighting spirit

are coerced. In attempting to build foreign

of the people, unified polities, and effective

nations, the United States is unable to impose

bureaucratic institutions that are capable of

a national idea and our liberalism, thankfully,

restoration.

limits our willingness to run foreign states

through sheer terror.

Coordination Is Illiberal

If the United States occupies a country

Seeing U.S. government agencies fighting

where the national identity is intact and sim-

and ignoring the wisdom others have offered,

ply assists in the management of its institu-

Washington's response these days is to pre-

The experts

tions and in security, state-building may suc-

scribe coordination. But this assumes that

who say more

ceed. But success requires the cooperation of

the planners want the same thing. They do

the subject population or a goodly portion of

not. Divergent plans are the product of diver-

American

it. That is not something that we can create

gent preferences, which result from divided

planning would

through planning.

power. A wish that agencies always march to

have saved Iraq

There is good evidence that the sectarian

the same strategy ignores the fact the agen-

differences in Iraq meant that such coopera-

cies should and do have different goals, inter-

confuse the

ests, and perspectives.51

tion was not salvageable after the American

power to conquer

invasion. As noted above, it appears that Iraq

The attempt to replicate Goldwater-Nichols

was held together--but barely--by Saddam

across national security agencies is based on the

foreign countries

Hussein's brutal police-state tactics. Beneath

idea that the highest end of government is

with the power to

that penumbra of state terror were irreconcil-

unity of effort--what the military calls joint-

run them.

able ambitions among Sunnis, Shiites, Kurds

ness--and that division and argument are the

and various groups therein. These differences

enemies of good policy. But jointness is meant

were likely to produce civil war in the absence

to achieve victory in battle, not wise policy in

of their forced suppression.

government. Intergovernmental contention,

Note that this was the logic George H. W.

even within the executive branch, is no accident.

Bush and Dick Cheney cited as the reason they

Unity, we should not forget, was anathema to

did not overthrow Saddam Hussein after eject-

the authors of the Constitution, who mistrust-

ing Iraq from Kuwait in 1991.49 Note also that

ed concentrations of power--even in foreign

affairs--and organized a government to bicker

the Future of Iraq Project, often mentioned as

and muddle through.

a guide to preventing Iraq's implosion, actual-

Liberal government makes organizations

ly shows why it was likely. Whatever their wis-

and the laws and regulations that govern them

dom, the papers lacked an outline of a politi-

to serve various ends, some competing. Our

cal settlement among the Iraqis, something

government is divided because it is the arena

that has also eluded the various Iraqi govern-

where the society's competing ends contend.52

ments.

The Bush administration sought ambitious

Bureaucratic disagreements help leaders

appreciate trade-offs and make wise choices.53

goals in Iraq--democracy and capitalism--but

even more modest objectives, such as creating

In fact, the Bush administration did achieve

stability and a functional state amid warring

jointness in its plans for the occupation--uni-

people, are usually beyond our capacity.

fying decisionmaking in the Department of

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