Description
Book SynopsisTrade Review“This book by a well-known American defense expert and former Pentagon official emphasizes the importance of understanding the possibilities and limits of American power and military force for conducting the nation’s foreign policy in a wise and balanced way. It is very well written and argued and deals with some of the most important and pressing issues in U.S. foreign policy from George Washington to the present.” —Klaus Larres, author of Uncertain Allies
"Parker has an excellent feel for the policy-making process, which is combined with a deep understanding of history. Whether or not one fully agrees with the book’s clear and vigorously stated point of view, I believe many readers will find it provocative, engaging, and well worth their time." —David Paull Nickles, author of Under the Wire: How the Telegraph Changed Diplomacy
"An enlightening and insightful assessment of the foreign policy statecraft of several American presidents." —New York Journal of Books
Table of ContentsPreface Introduction 1. What Makes for Successful Statecraft 2. Washington, Hamilton, Jefferson and Madison: The Diplomacy of Realism versus the Diplomacy of Ideology and Uncertainty 3. Abraham Lincoln: The Diplomacy of Prudence 4. Theodore Roosevelt: From Nationalist to Realist 5. Franklin Roosevelt: The Diplomacy of Guile 6. Truman and Acheson in the Korean War: When Reasonable Leaders Stumble into Disasters 7. Nixon and Kissinger in the 1973 Arab-Israeli War: The Ability to Adapt and to Anticipate, and the Mastery of Complex Negotiations 8. Carter and Brzezinski and the Fall of the Shah of Iran: Values and Interests 9. George Herbert Bush and the First Gulf War: The Diplomacy of Determination 10. Obama: The Reluctant Foreign Policy President Conclusion
