What would the Dems do differently? Surprisingly little.

Madeleine Albright’s new book The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God and World Affairs is out today and you can read an excerpt here and key quotes here. I recommend giving the whole thing a read. (And I’m not just saying that because I learned today that Albright could leg press three of your humble correspondent.) Albright ...

608686_albright_book_05.jpg
608686_albright_book_05.jpg

Madeleine Albright’s new book The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God and World Affairs is out today and you can read an excerpt here and key quotes here. I recommend giving the whole thing a read. (And I’m not just saying that because I learned today that Albright could leg press three of your humble correspondent.)

Madeleine Albright’s new book The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God and World Affairs is out today and you can read an excerpt here and key quotes here. I recommend giving the whole thing a read. (And I’m not just saying that because I learned today that Albright could leg press three of your humble correspondent.)

Albright is the wise woman of the Democratic Party on national security. Her prestigious Georgetown salon operates as a crash course in international relations for Dems with presidential ambitions. So, her work on the role of religion in foreign policy is required reading for anyone who wants to understand what a Democratic administration would do differently. After finishing it, the conclusion I came to was: surprisingly little. Yes, Albright bashes the Bush administration for Iraq, Guantanamo, and its religiously tinged language. But when she starts talking about the future rather than the past, she sounds none too different from her father’s most famous — and favorite — pupil, Condoleezza Rice. Albright’s call to “blend realism with idealism,” by promoting democracy at a gradual pace, wouldn’t sound out of place in any of Rice’s speeches about the administration’s goals in the Middle East. All of which suggests that, the democratizing baby won’t be thrown out with the Bush bath water and supports Jai’s argument that Middle Eastern tyrants hoping to wait out Bush are wasting their time.

The book also contains some interesting policy proposals. One that struck me as particularly smart is that the State Department should institute a cadre of religion experts to offer specialist advice in the way that the nonproliferation and human rights specialists do. If you buy the book make sure to read the footnotes. They are stuffed full of political jabs and witty anecdotes. For those who can’t get enough of Albright, there will be another book along soon: An illustrated guide to her collection of decorative pins.

James Forsyth is assistant editor at Foreign Policy.

More from Foreign Policy

The USS Nimitz and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and South Korean Navy warships sail in formation during a joint naval exercise off the South Korean coast.
The USS Nimitz and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and South Korean Navy warships sail in formation during a joint naval exercise off the South Korean coast.

America Is a Heartbeat Away From a War It Could Lose

Global war is neither a theoretical contingency nor the fever dream of hawks and militarists.

A protester waves a Palestinian flag in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, during a demonstration calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. People sit and walk on the grass lawn in front of the protester and barricades.
A protester waves a Palestinian flag in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, during a demonstration calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. People sit and walk on the grass lawn in front of the protester and barricades.

The West’s Incoherent Critique of Israel’s Gaza Strategy

The reality of fighting Hamas in Gaza makes this war terrible one way or another.

Biden dressed in a dark blue suit walks with his head down past a row of alternating U.S. and Israeli flags.
Biden dressed in a dark blue suit walks with his head down past a row of alternating U.S. and Israeli flags.

Biden Owns the Israel-Palestine Conflict Now

In tying Washington to Israel’s war in Gaza, the U.S. president now shares responsibility for the broader conflict’s fate.

U.S. President Joe Biden is seen in profile as he greets Chinese President Xi Jinping with a handshake. Xi, a 70-year-old man in a dark blue suit, smiles as he takes the hand of Biden, an 80-year-old man who also wears a dark blue suit.
U.S. President Joe Biden is seen in profile as he greets Chinese President Xi Jinping with a handshake. Xi, a 70-year-old man in a dark blue suit, smiles as he takes the hand of Biden, an 80-year-old man who also wears a dark blue suit.

Taiwan’s Room to Maneuver Shrinks as Biden and Xi Meet

As the latest crisis in the straits wraps up, Taipei is on the back foot.