Thursday, January 28, 2016

My latest: An exclusive interview with Bob Gates about Obama, Trump and Madman Theory, plus other columns from the last three months


Dear Friends, 

The columns, stories and essays below run from last November to this week.

I found fascinating Gates's take on the bully, Trump, and on the role of emotion in international affairs that No Drama Obama seems to miss. (On that score, also take a look at the obituary for Benedict Anderson, whose writings about Indonesia may hold the real key to Obama's personality.)

I am also quite proud of the "Have Terrorists Won" story, which centers on an interview with Gilles Kepel (the answer is no, but the West could still lose); and the stories in the aftermath of the November 13 attacks. 

I think the articles about Le Pen go a way toward helping us understand the woman who may be the next president of France, and the essay on guns and slavery in America, which grew out of solid research for my book, Our Man in Charleston: Britain's Secret Agent in the Civil War South, surprised and shocked many readers. 

All the best, Chris