WTH Should I Read This Summer? The Peacemaker: Ronald Reagan, the Cold War, and the World on the Brink by Will Inboden

The What the Hell crew continues our summer reading series! Our
next pick is The Peacemaker: Ronald Reagan, the Cold War, and the
World on the Brink. The Peacemaker’s focus is Ronald Reagan’s
foreign policy, adding to previous research with recently
declassified national security documents. But just as
importantly, the history presented reminds us why the challenges
we face today – socialism rebranded, struggles for sovereignty in
Ukraine and Taiwan – are not novel. In fact, it is pretty simple
to guess where Reagan might have stood in 2023. Inboden
underscores as well that, contrary to popular opinion, the fall
of the Soviet Union under Reagan was never inevitable, but
required a real US policy shift. It is worth the read (or, if you
are like Marc, the audiobook listen) to remember the Cold War
muscles the US built not too long ago, or even just to remember
what decorum and strength in leadership looks like in government.


Bonus: Reagan’s legacy lives on at the Reagan Institute; listen
to our podcast on their summer survey here.


William Inboden is the Professor and Director of the Hamilton
Center for Classical and Civic Education at the University of
Florida. He previously served as William Powers, Jr. Chair and
Executive Director of the Clements Center for National Security,
Associate Professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, and
Distinguished Scholar at the Robert S. Strauss Center for
International Security and Law, all at the University of
Texas-Austin. He also serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Texas
National Security Review. Inboden’s other current roles include
Associate with the National Intelligence Council, member of the
CIA Historical Advisory Panel, member of the State Department’s
Historical Advisory Council, and Senior Fellow with the Trinity
Forum.


Download the transcript here.