All the Presidents’ Wars
“A primer in how to lose the war on terror.
National security expert Bergen shows how intelligence agencies, politicians, and the military misread the world after 9/11—the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan cost roughly $6 trillion and 7,000 American lives. One serious misstep was attacking Iraq on the assumption that it was involved in the 9/11 attacks; another, by Bergen’s account, was relegating the war in Afghanistan to secondary status, a diversion that, he charges, resulted in the Taliban’s return to power 20 years after its initial defeat. “The dual debacles of the Iraq War and the Afghan withdrawal signaled that the US superpower had little idea what it was doing when it came to foreign policy,” he writes. He elaborates: Even though the brass was wary of sending troops to “faraway countries they had little understanding of,” presidents from Bush to Trump pushed for war or, at least in Obama’s case, kept the status quo. Other missteps that the author enumerates include disarming the Iraqi military and purging members of Saddam Hussein’s Baath Party, which put a million disaffected and well-trained fighters out on the street, strengthening Al Qaeda in Iraq and later ISIS (“the pool of potential terrorists expanded quite dramatically because of the Iraq War”). Bergen explodes numerous assumptions: Pakistan, he writes, did not shelter Osama bin Laden, as the CIA asserted, and torture such as waterboarding produced almost no actionable intelligence. Most damning of all, however, was that in both Afghanistan and Iraq, “there was no real plan for the ‘day after.’” As Colin Powell said, “You break it, you own it,” to which Bergen adds, “Make real plans for the ‘day after’ the war appears to be won, or you will likely lose the peace.”
A profoundly insightful account of why we’re mired in forever wars, and likely will be long into the future.”
—Kirkus, Starred review
“Peter Bergen delivers the best overview of America’s post-9/11 wars that I’ve seen. He does thoughtfully and fairly, laying out the facts and then coming to solid, even-handed conclusions. Anyone who wants to understand American foreign policy needs to read this masterful account.
Essential reading—and, as a bonus, well-written.” —Thomas E. Ricks, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and author of Fiasco
“Peter Bergen lifts the proverbial ‘fog of war’ to provide a brilliantly clear and much-needed reckoning with America’s twenty-five-year Global War on Terror. With an even hand and expert skill, he holds U.S. presidents and policymakers accountable for blunders of historic proportion.” ––Jane Mayer, New Yorker staff writer, author of The Dark Side
“With his signature clarity and unparalleled insight, Peter Bergen traces the decisions made in the Oval Office and on the battlefield after 9/11—and the lasting consequences that followed. A timely, incisive, and compelling account of a war whose impact is far from over.” —Clarissa Ward, CNN Chief International Correspondent and author of On All Fronts: The Education of a Journalist
“All the Presidents’ Wars is an unflinching look at the tragic mistakes and miscalculations of four U.S. administrations, as well as the quiet successes that thwarted terrorist plans for further attacks on the U.S. homeland. Drawing on decades of reporting, Bergen’s book is packed with revelations and fascinating insights. An important, deeply researched book, and a fascinating read.” —Joby Warrick, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Black Flags: The Rise of ISIS
