Wanting War: Why the Bush Administration Invaded Iraq

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, International, International Relations, History, Military, United States
Cover of the book Wanting War: Why the Bush Administration Invaded Iraq by Jeffrey Record, Potomac Books Inc.
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Jeffrey Record ISBN: 9781597975902
Publisher: Potomac Books Inc. Publication: January 31, 2010
Imprint: Language: English
Author: Jeffrey Record
ISBN: 9781597975902
Publisher: Potomac Books Inc.
Publication: January 31, 2010
Imprint:
Language: English
Wanting War is the first comprehensive analysis of the often contradictory reasons why President George W. Bush went to war in Iraq and of the war's impact on future U.S. armed intervention abroad. Though the White House sold the war as a necessity to eliminate an alleged Iraqi threat, other agendas were at play.

Drawing on new assessments of George W. Bush's presidency, recent memoirs by key administration decision makers, and Jeffrey Record's own expertise on U.S. military interventions since World War II, Wanting War contends that Bush's invasion of Iraq was more about the arrogance of post–Cold War American power than it was about Saddam Hussein. Ultimately, Iraq was selected not because it posed a convincing security threat but because Baghdad was militarily helpless. Operation Iraqi Freedom was a demonstration of American power, especially the will to use it.

Ironically, as Record points out, a war launched to advertise American combativeness is likely to lead U.S. foreign policymakers and military leaders to be averse to using force in all but the most favorable circumstances. But this new respect for the limits of America's conventional military power, especially as an instrument of ffecting political change in foreign cultures, and for the inherent risks and uncertainties of war, may prove to be one of the Iraq War's few positive legacies. Record argues that the American experience in Iraq ought to be a cautionary tale for those who advocate for further U.S. military action.
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Wanting War is the first comprehensive analysis of the often contradictory reasons why President George W. Bush went to war in Iraq and of the war's impact on future U.S. armed intervention abroad. Though the White House sold the war as a necessity to eliminate an alleged Iraqi threat, other agendas were at play.

Drawing on new assessments of George W. Bush's presidency, recent memoirs by key administration decision makers, and Jeffrey Record's own expertise on U.S. military interventions since World War II, Wanting War contends that Bush's invasion of Iraq was more about the arrogance of post–Cold War American power than it was about Saddam Hussein. Ultimately, Iraq was selected not because it posed a convincing security threat but because Baghdad was militarily helpless. Operation Iraqi Freedom was a demonstration of American power, especially the will to use it.

Ironically, as Record points out, a war launched to advertise American combativeness is likely to lead U.S. foreign policymakers and military leaders to be averse to using force in all but the most favorable circumstances. But this new respect for the limits of America's conventional military power, especially as an instrument of ffecting political change in foreign cultures, and for the inherent risks and uncertainties of war, may prove to be one of the Iraq War's few positive legacies. Record argues that the American experience in Iraq ought to be a cautionary tale for those who advocate for further U.S. military action.

More books from Potomac Books Inc.

Cover of the book Combined Destinies by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book Man and Wound in the Ancient World by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book Help! I'm a Military SpouseùI Get a Life Too! by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book Warfare Welfare by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book "My Heart Became Attached" by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book Losing the Golden Hour: An Insider's View of Iraq's Reconstruction by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book Clive by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book Righting the Balance by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book The Quotable Founding Fathers by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book Presidents' Most Wanted™ by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book Socrates in Sichuan: Chinese Students Search for Truth, Justice, and the (Chinese) Way by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book The Age of Jackson and the Art of American Power, 1815-1848 by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book Hitler's Prisoners by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book Whiskey Women by Jeffrey Record
Cover of the book After the Taliban by Jeffrey Record
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy