Dangerous Nation: America's Place in the World from Its Earliest Days to the Dawn of the Twentieth Century
Robert Kagan talks about U.S. influence in the world going back to the days of the Puritans. He argues that the U.S. has been increasing its global power steadily for centuries and says that the idea that the U.S. was once an isolationist power is a myth. Following Mr. Kagan's remarks, New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman comments on the book and engages in a debate with Mr. Kagan about some of the claims he makes. This event was hosted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, D.C.
Robert Kagan is the author of Of Paradise and Power and co-editor of Present Dangers: Crisis and Opportunity in American Foreign and Defense Policy. He writes a monthly column for the Washington Post. Mr. Kagan is currently a senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Bio
Thomas L. Friedman
Thomas L. Friedman is a foreign affairs columnist for The New York Times. Friedman is an internationally renowned author, reporter, and columnist; the recipient of three Pulitzer Prizes; and the author of five best-selling books: From Beirut to Jerusalem; The Lexus and the Olive Tree: Understanding Globalization; Longitudes and Attitudes: Exploring the World After September 11; The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century; and Hot, Flat, and Crowded: Why We Need A Green Revolution – And How It Can Renew America. His foreign affairs column in the Times, which appears twice a week, reports on US domestic politics and foreign policy, Middle East conflict, international economics, environment, biodiversity, and energy.
Robert Kagan
Robert Kagan is a senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment. He served in the State Department from 1984 to 1988 as a member of the Policy Planning Staff, as principal speechwriter for Secretary of State George P. Shultz, and as deputy for policy in the Bureau of Inter-American Affairs.
Jessica Tuchman Mathews
Jessica Tuchman Mathews was appointed president of Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in 1997. Her career includes posts in the executive and legislative branches of government, in management and research in the nonprofit arena, and in journalism.
She was a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations from 1993 to 1997 and served as director of the Council’s Washington program. While there, she published her seminal 1997 Foreign Affairs article, "Power Shift," chosen by the editors as one of the most influential in the journal’s 75 years.