Office of the Historian

246. Information Memorandum From the Director of the Policy Planning Staff (Rodman) to Secretary of State Shultz1

Washington, August 12, 1985

SUBJECT

  • Possible Theme for Your Address at the Morgenthau Award Ceremony

Here is a possible theme for your address at the Morgenthau Award Ceremony, October 2.

—Since Hans Morgenthau was one of the founders of the “International Realist” school of American foreign policy thinking, you might want to take this opportunity to address the thorny and complex issue of what role our ideals ought to play, and do play, in the conduct of our foreign policy. You touched on some of this in your San Francisco Commonwealth Club speech last February.2 You could delve deeper into some of the philosophical issues. Do our interests require us to support democracy everywhere? Clearly not, but in the postwar world the spread of democracy is in our interest. Does “realism” mean ignoring these ideological issues? Again, clearly not, but we must beware of “crusades” that cannot bring results, that sometimes destroy the very goals they proclaim. History is rife with examples. How do we make the difficult decisions about when and where to use our power to foster the growth of democracy? The speech could include US-Soviet relations, Eastern Europe, Central America, South Africa, the Philippines, etc.3

  1. Source: Department of State, Executive Secretariat, S/P Files, Memoranda and Correspondence from the Director of the Policy Planning Staff to the Secretary and Other Seventh Floor Principals: Lot 89D149, S/P Chrons 8/1–31/85. No classification marking. Drafted by Kagan. McKinley initialed the memorandum and wrote “12 Aug.” Shultz’s stamped initials appear at the top of the memorandum. A stamped notation indicates that it was received on August 12 at 4:37 p.m.↩
  2. See Document 232.↩
  3. In the right-hand margin next to this sentence, Shultz wrote: “Sounds good. G.” Shultz’s October 2 address before the National Committee on American Foreign Policy, at which he received the Hans J. Morgenthau Memorial Award, is printed as Document 251.↩