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Chad Levinson is Assistant Professor of Government and International Affairs at Virginia Tech. He has taught previously at the University of Chicago and Williams College and has held research fellowships at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center and the Kluge Center at the Library of Congress.
Everyone knows that think tanks, lobbies, and other domestic groups routinely advocate for policies they favor and try to convince presidents to adopt them. In this timely and provocative book, Chad Levinson shows that the reverse is also true: presidents have long relied on these same organizations to build public support for their own initiatives. A must-read for anyone who wants to know why the United States remains wedded to an overly ambitious and frequently disappointing foreign policy.--Stephen M. Walt, author of The Hell of Good Intentions How do presidents build support for unpopular foreign policies, and why are their efforts usually successful? As Chad Levinson deftly reveals in this book, the answer is deceptively simple: they never act alone. A vital, fascinating portrait of how US foreign policy is made.--Andrew Preston, author of Total Defense The imperial presidency is also the PR presidency. As Chad Levinson demonstrates in this truly groundbreaking study, presidents from FDR to the present have cultivated seemingly independent groups to sell Congress and the public on ambitious foreign policy initiatives. Levinson brilliantly unearths the unsettling history of the 'echo system' behind the American century.--Stephen Wertheim, author of Tomorrow, the World When presidents seek the domestic support needed for military intervention abroad, they rely upon more than just their bully pulpit. Organized interests willingly step in to assist--amplifying arguments presidents cannot credibly make themselves and thereby helping to clear a path to war. In this sharp and carefully researched book, Chad Levinson shows that in national security politics, many think tanks, NGOs, and media outlets function not as independent checks on presidential power but as extensions of the state itself.--William G. Howell, coauthor of Trajectory of Power Chad Levinson has identified a crucial element of foreign policy debates and makes us see it anew through the prism of what he astutely terms 'extra-governmental organizations.' Drawing on his comprehensive knowledge of twentieth-century US history, Levinson highlights how profoundly America's domestic politics influences its foreign policy. The President's Echo System will ignite an important and necessary debate.--Thomas A. Schwartz, author of Henry Kissinger and American Power
