This website serves as a survey of United States International Relations and Foreign Policy from the Clinton administration to the present day Trump administration. Contestation and partisanship in U.S. elections have been central issues in the electoral process. With that partisanship, differing policies arise within the Democrat and Republican parties' candidates. As each future President campaigns, they make promises and claims for their future actions if they are elected. Then, following their inauguration, their constituents expect them to act upon those same promises and claims. This results in, sometimes, shifting actions in the transition from one presidency to another. This may be necessary, as is needed at the time. Otherwise, a President may disagree with a policy or have supporting interests who do not benefit from it, so the President may discontinue it. This website's longitudinal approach helps readers to understand how presidential actions and policies fare over time, and how policies relate to and influence one another.

The course for which this project was created, focuses on how the world was affected by the terrorist attacks on 9/11/2001. Beginning with the Clinton administration and continuing to the Trump administration, readers are given context from pre- and post-9/11 so that they may glean insight from the change in Presidential policies during those times. When entering the office, Presidents bring personal ideologies with him which structure their approach to executing their duties. While there are commonalities in Presidents, there are personal aspects which cause deviations. Like other major powers in the world, Russia and China have proved to be both allies and adversaries at various times. Since the United States used nuclear weapons in World War 2, they have been a constant focus of international relations, and Presidents have endeavored to control such powerful weapons. International associations are also an essential part of a Presidential policy, and that is well exemplified by U.S. relations with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). While terrorism did occur before 9/11, it rose to prominence on the global stage following the attacks. Since that time, the President and the world have continued to grapple with the constantly changing threat. As a slowly moving concern, climate change affects the world's environment as a public good. As a significant producer of greenhouse gasses, the U.S. is viewed as an important voice on the topic. Finally, as the wealthiest country in the world, the U.S. drives the global economy, and its trade with other countries is a valuable asset.
As a subject of specific inquiry, the Israel-Palestine conflict has been a source of debate for decades following the U.N. partition plan in 1948. Since that time, U.S. Presidents have facilitated talks surrounding the issue and have acted as prominent members of the international community whose opinion carries weight on the world's stage.
The United States' role in the world certainly has changed over time, both in minor and major ways. As the richest and one of the most powerful countries in the world, the U.S. often serves as a world leader and if it takes a step, many more states are likely to follow. U.S. Presidents commonly shift between policies which favor the U.S. or favor the world as a whole. However, what is certain is that while one President may make changes to the policies enacted by one of their predecessors, those changes are just as temporary as the policy which they may amend. What remains to be achieved is adherence to the mission of United States within the world, and how that goal is best reached through longstanding cooperation from one president to the next.