Suchergebnisse

When citizens elect leaders whose policies conflict with standing international agreements, which claim deserves more respect, the treaty or the will of the majority? International law and democratic theory both point to constitutionalism as a way to address this dilemma. An examination of the effects of the elections of John F. Kennedy in 1961 and Willy Brandt in 1969 on U.S.-F.R.G. alliance commitments shows that the dilemma is not resolvable in principle, but that constitutional democracies adopt a variety of practices including consultation, public diplomacy, and commitment reinterpretation to make the tension between the two principles manageable.