Hard Power: The New Politics of National Security

by Kurt Campbell, Michael E. O'Hanlon, Michael O'Hanlon

Our ideas about national security have changed radically over the last five years. It has become a political tool, a "wedge issue," a symbol of pride and fear. It is also the one issue above all others that can make or break an election. And this is why the Democratic Party has been steadily losing power since 2001. In Hard Power, Michael O'Hanlon, an expert on foreign policy at the Brookings Institution, and Kurt Campbell, an authority on international security at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, explain how the Democrats lost credibility on issues of security and foreign policy, how they can get it back--and why they must. They recall the successful Democratic military legacy of past decades, as well as recent Democratic innovations--like the Homeland Security Office and the idea of nation-building--that have been successfully co-opted by the Republican administration. And, most importantly, they develop a broad national security vision for America, including specific defense policies and a strategy to win the war on terror.

336 pages, Hardcover

First published October 2, 2006

Reviews

[May Ling]

This book makes an argument about the emergence of soft power in American foreign policy. This was quite surprising as one would generally expect a book in support of the military to lean in a fairly biased political direction. . However, Campbell and O’Hanlon begin the book by showing the bi-partisan failure in the area of security policy, while highlighting the marginal successes on both sides. The book artfully describes the need for energy policy as a means of managing “soft” power. There are also a few interesting arguments on China. I’m not sure I totally agree with that portion of the literature; but I do think the idea that the US should improve Asian Foreign policy is a good one. The idea that –at the margin – Asia, with its mix of religion, it’s soft power via economic and subtle foreign policy, is a place where battles can be won and lost is an interesting one. I probably need to know more about various other regions mentioned in this book to make solid commentary and ranking.

[Kris Wijoyo · Rating 4 out of 5]

yang gw suka dari buku ini, Indonesia katanya harus ditaklukkan "heart and mind"-nya karena Indonesia adalah key nation,,,alias bangsa kunci wah...jadi liat banyak peluang besar ke depan buat negeri tercintaku!

[Zach Zeliff · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very period specific, did not learn much reading in 2015