Book Report by George Kennedy
Bob Woodward offers one of the most revealing narratives of a relatively inexperienced and young president trying to manage his national security team’s oversight of two unpopular wars – one of which he had publicly opposed, and the other we can justifiably call his.
The details of the conversations and the private thoughts of the individual members of the president’s national security team and his political advisors is so illuminating, I do question the ability of a president and his war cabinet to deliberate the most weighty policy issues in secrecy – assuming that is the intent. Could Washington function without leaks?
Woodward, the consummate insider, brilliantly describes the inevitable tensions between a military culture interested only in the preservation of conflict – the industry that is the modern definition of a metastasizing defense establishment, and a commander-in-chief at least committed to bringing rationality to 21st Century war planning, strategy, defining achievable goals, and desirable outcomes.
It is fundamentally important for a president to seek a balance in the resources we now unquestionably allocate, even off the books, to permanent war and dubious military strategies, and other national priorities. Without a unified society and a strong economy, how does a society, even the United States, sustain its commitment of resources to regional conflicts in perpetuity?
These questions rang in my head the deeper I was drawn into this book. I have not always been a supporter of the loquacious vice president but, without his experience in the room and a willingness to confront the boilerplate assertions of the uniformed military chiefs, I think the outcomes the author describes would have been even more stark: an almost unlimited draw on troops for the balance of the first term of this administration, and all questions regarding an exit timetable subjected to the standard “troop withdrawals are subject to conditions on the ground” defined by regional commanders whose only commitment is to the war they have.
Every American concerned about the future of our country should read this book and begin a dialogue with their elected representatives.
The first question I would ask is, why is it postulated that it is in our national interest to be mired in wars even the military admits we cannot win at a price we can not sustain in national treasure? Second, I would ask – as a not so subtle suggestion – if the American military abhors exit strategies, why would they and our political leadership not support a national draft, or lottery, to unify America’s commitment to and belief in shared sacrifice to prosecute wars they deem in our national interest?
A political tour de force, one that I hope is on the nightstand of everyone who thinks about issues of war and peace.
Bob Woodward is an associate editor at The Washington Post. He has shared in two Pulitzer Prizes and has authored or co-authored eleven #l national nonfiction bestsellers. He lives in Washington, D.C.
