The Power Problem

Reviews / Votes

The Power Problem doesn't flinch from offering specifics as to what commitments the United States should keep and which it should shed. In addition to proposing criteria for using military force that are stricter than the old Weinberger-Powell doctrine-allied interests would no longer be treated as synonymous with American national interests-Preble suggests 'right-sizing' our military forces for the defense of American territory and the Western hemisphere.... Preble has started a debate where too often there has been a monologue.

- W. James Antle III (Washington Times) An important book, The Power Problem,... puts forth the case that American military power naturally invites excessive or irrelevant use, and that the habits of mind created by military supremacy have caused the United States to be less safe than otherwise, less free, more vulnerable, and less able to do the things that fundamental national security demands. Its author, Christopher A. Preble, is a former officer in the U.S. Navy and is head of foreign policy studies at the Cato Institute. He argues, as many others do, that the United States has a level of military power that it doesn't need, that has limited utility against stateless enemies and insurgents, and causes confusion between military strength and national power, the latter being the ability to actually produce a desired effect. It is a good and lucid book and should be read.

- William Pfaff (International Herald Tribune) Christopher Preble compellingly argues that America's recent predisposition toward deploying force rather than more subtly using the mystique of limitless ability that only superpowers can wield is hurting its interests and place in the world. The Obama administration is inheriting a nation wounded by a 'power problem' after the exposure of key limits in Iraq and Afghanistan. Preble's book is must reading for the Obama team and others if they want to understand why American power is slipping and what can be done to reverse this worrisome reality.

- Steve Clemons, Director, American Strategy Program, New America Foundation, and publisher (The Washington Note) I recommend Christopher Preble's excellent new book, The Power Problem... which tackles the familiar justifications for American dominance head-on, and shows that the usual pieties about global stability or spreading democracy are far from airtight.

- Stephen M. Walt (ForeignPolicy.com) I want to recommend a new book called The Power Problem: How American Military Dominance Makes Us Less Safe, Less Prosperous, and Less Free. The book's got a good explanatory subtitle, but to briefly sketch the thesis, Preble argues that our over-large military establishment isn't just a waste of money, but actually harmful to our security.... If we had much less military capacity, we would have a much narrower definition of the strategic purpose of our military-to defend the country against threats-and would find that we were happy with that equilibrium. But the large military spawns a grandiose strategic concept that winds up writing checks that even a gigantic military can't cash. I think this analysis is dead on.

- Matthew Yglesias (Think Progress) In an important new book, The Power Problem, Christopher Preble defies the conventional categories and gives us a 21st-century foreign policy consistent with American traditions.... Preble argues that our current defense posture is radically out of line with American interests, properly understood. He calls for scrapping our outdated Cold War alliances, and insists that the constitutional goal of 'the common defense of the United States' could be secured by a military budget far smaller than what we currently spend.

- Gene Healy (Washington Examiner) In this readable new volume, Preble argues flatly that the current level of American military capabilities makes the United States less safe, less prosperous, and less free. America's military power should be reduced to fit within the balances of the constitution and a realistic view of security requirements in a multipolar world.... Preble's spirited analysis gives rise to some big questions: Are American elites prepared to give up running the world? Can we afford to relinquish the prerequisites of global hegemony? Who will keep order in the world if not hegemonic America?... Whatever the inconveniences of change, Preble makes clear that the status quo itself is increasingly expensive and ultimately unsustainable.

- David Calleo and Marco Zambotti (Survival)