Synopses & Reviews
How could the United States, a nation founded on the principles of liberty and equality, have produced Abu Ghraib, torture memos, Plamegate, and warrantless wiretaps? Did America set out to become an empire? And if so, how has it reconciled its imperialism--and in some cases, its crimes--with the idea of liberty so forcefully expressed in the Declaration of Independence? Empire for Liberty tells the story of men who used the rhetoric of liberty to further their imperial ambitions, and reveals that the quest for empire has guided the nation's architects from the very beginning--and continues to do so today. Historian Richard Immerman paints nuanced portraits of six exceptional public figures who manifestly influenced the course of American empire: Benjamin Franklin, John Quincy Adams, William Henry Seward, Henry Cabot Lodge, John Foster Dulles, and Paul Wolfowitz. Each played a pivotal role as empire builder, and, with the exception of Adams, did so without occupying the presidency. Taking readers from the founding of the republic to the war on terror, Immerman shows how each individual's influence arose from a keen sensitivity to the concerns of his times; how the trajectory of American empire was relentless if not straight; and how these shrewd and powerful individuals shaped their rhetoric about liberty to suit their needs. But as Immerman demonstrates in this timely and provocative book, liberty and empire were on a collision course. And in the war on terror and the occupation of Iraq, they violently collided.
Synopsis
Tells the story of the men throughout American history who used the rhetoric of liberty to further imperial ambitions, and argues that the quest for empire has guided the nation's architects from the very beginning--and continues to do so today. By the author of The CIA in Guatemala.
Table of Contents
Introduction : contending with the American empire -- Benjamin Franklin and America's imperial vision -- John Quincy Adams and America's tortured empire -- Wlliam Henry Seward reimagines the American empire -- Henry Cabot Lodge and the new American empire -- John Foster Dulles and the conflicted empire -- Paul Wolfowitz and the lonely empire -- Postscript : the dark side.