Strategic Commentator: Biography of Robert Kagan

I. Introduction

Robert Kagan has been described as a “neoconservative historian,” and yet the commentator’s views are more complex than can be squeezed into one phrase. Kagan does exhibit some of the hallmarks of neoconservative ideology, including the continued belief in American exceptionalism, and a willingness to use terms like “new world order.” Kagan vehemently opposes the belief that the American hegemon is declining in status and power, admitting only that the United States is rethinking its role in foreign policy and international affairs. Kagan is a foreign policy advisor who Barack Obama has reportedly heralded and cited in presidential speeches. One reviewer of books in The New York Times described the author’s work as being “wonderfully argued.” Another claims that glaring logical fallacies, “fuzzy generalizations, debatable assertions and self-important declarations of the obvious,” generally discredit the international relations maestro. Therefore, Robert Kagan emerges as a highly controversial commentator who, at the very least, has a grasp on the American psyche, fears and all.

II. Author Background

Robert Kagan was born in Athens, NY in 1958. He worked as a political advisor to Congressman Jack Kemp, before joining the Reagan administration. After writing speeches for Secretary of State George Schultz, Kagan became head of the Office of Public Diplomacy, and the Deputy for Policy in the Bureau of Inter-American Affairs. Kagan also founded the Project for the New American Century, and has authored several books on foreign policy and international relations.

III. Concepts of International Relations

Kagan’s earliest work describes the Reagan administration’s interventionist foreign policies, as in A Twilight ...

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Kagan, Robert. “A Twilight Struggle.” Foreign Affairs. July/August 1996. Retrieved online: http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/52129/david-c-hendrickson/a-twilight-struggle-american-power-and-nicaragua-1977-1990

Kagan, Robert. Of Paradise and Power. New York: First Vintage, 2004.

Kagan, Robert. The Return of History and the End of Dreams. New York: Random House, 2008.

Kakutani, Michiko. “Historian Who Influences Both Obama and Romney: ‘The World America Made,’ by Robert Kagan.” The New York Times. 13 Feb 2012. Retrieved online: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/14/books/the-world-america-made-by-robert-kagan.html?_r=0

Sanger, David E. “Democracy, Limited.” The New York Times. 18 May, 2008. Retrieved online: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/18/books/review/Sanger-t.html?pagewanted=all