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National Security and Double Government
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About National Security And Double Government
Product Description Why has U.S. security policy scarcely changed from the Bush to the Obama administration? National Security and Double Government offers a disquieting answer. Michael J. Glennon challenges the myth that U.S. security policy is still forged by America's visible, "Madisonian institutions" - the President, Congress, and the courts. Their roles, he argues, have become largely illusory. Presidential control is now nominal, congressional oversight is dysfunctional, and judicial review is negligible. The book details the dramatic shift in power that has occurred from the Madisonian institutions to a concealed "Trumanite network" - the several hundred managers of the military, intelligence, diplomatic, and law enforcement agencies who are responsible for protecting the nation and who have come to operate largely immune from constitutional and electoral restraints. Reform efforts face daunting obstacles. Remedies within this new system of "double government" require the hollowed-out Madisonian institutions to exercise the very power that they lack. Meanwhile, reform initiatives from without confront the same pervasive political ignorance within the polity that has given rise to this duality. The book sounds a powerful warning about the need to resolve this dilemma-and the mortal threat posed to accountability, democracy, and personal freedom if double government persists. This paperback version features an Afterword that addresses the emerging danger posed by populist authoritarianism rejecting the notion that the security bureaucracy can or should be relied upon to block it. Review "To Michael J Glennon, in National Security and Double Government, . . . no matter who is elected to run White House and Congress, they are puppets of a permanent apparatus. In less capable hands, Glennon's thesis might come across as sophomoric. Yet as a scholar who worked on Capitol Hill for years, Glennon is that rare thing: an academic with real world experience. Instead of a rupture between George W Bush and Obama, Glennon sees remarkable continuity. Towards the end of his presidency, Bush was asked what most surprised him about the job. 'How little authority I have,' he said. That is also what people say about Obama." -Edward Luce, Financial Times "Mr. Glennon smartly points out that while lawmakers aren't experts in social policy, education, economics and countless other areas subject to legislation, it is only in the realm of national security and intelligence that they surrender the reins of power. This is a powerful part of his argument: The lack of oversight means there is neither check nor balance on how our national-security policies are implemented or on how they are created in the first place." -Ali Soufan, The Wall Street Journal "Glennon's book is not a breezy read: It's thick with fact and not unappreciative of conundrum. Nor is he glib with proposed solutions: to adequately respond to the threats posed by a below-the-radar second government will require. But if Glennon's book is enlightening it is also scary. And it's not fiction." -Mickey Edwards, The Boston Globe "Glennon has written a unique book that stands out among the collection of post-9/11 works for the way it lashes historical trends to the most contemporary problems of government secrecy, power and overreach in a highly readable way. I underlined passages on just about every page and can't wait to reread it. The 'ah ha!' moments are endless." -Dana Priest, The Washington Post "Michael Glennon's book is important precisely because it pulls back the curtain to reveal the realities of the largely unconstrained U.S. national security state. In doing so, Glennon's analysis shows how the national security apparatus is a threat to the very freedoms its inhabitants and supporters purport to protect." -Christopher J. Coyne, Public Choice "Glennon's argument is powerful and troubling. Whatever the exact diagnosis of a problem that is clearly multidim
