President Lincoln or Cobra II

President Lincoln: The Duty of a Statesman

Author: William Lee Miller

In his acclaimed book Lincoln's Virtues, William Lee Miller explored Abraham Lincoln's intellectual and moral development. Now he completes his "ethical biography," showing how the amiable and inexperienced backcountry politician was transformed by constitutional alchemy into an oath-bound head of state. Faced with a radical moral contradiction left by the nation's Founders, Lincoln struggled to find a balance between the universal ideals of Equality and Liberty and the monstrous injustice of human slavery.

With wit and penetrating sensitivity, Miller brings together the great themes that have become Lincoln's legacy—preserving the United States of America while ending the odious institution that corrupted the nation's meaning—and illuminates his remarkable presidential combination: indomitable resolve and supreme magnanimity.

Publishers Weekly

Subtle and nuanced, this study is something of a sequel to Miller's Lincoln's Virtues. Here he examines Honest Abe's moral and intellectual life while in the White House, prosecuting a bloody war. Miller finds that early in his presidency, Lincoln balanced two strong ethical imperatives-his duty to preserve the union and his determination not to fire the first shots. Of course, Miller also addresses that other great moral challenge: slavery. In short, says Miller, Lincoln believed slavery was "not only profoundly wrong but profoundly wrong specifically as measured by this nation's moral essence," and he used a terrific amount of political savvy to push through emancipation. But more original is Miller's discussion of what Lincoln thought was at stake in the war. Through a close reading of the president's papers, Miller persuasively argues that Lincoln believed secession would not merely "diminish" or "damage" the United States but would destroy it. That, in turn, was an issue of global import, for if the American experiment failed, free government would not be secure anywhere. Miller has given us one of the most insightful accounts of Lincoln published in recent years. (Feb. 5)

Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information

R. Kent Rasmussen - Library Journal

This thoughtful and elegantly written sequel to Miller's 2002 biography, Lincoln's Virtues, focuses on the decisions Lincoln faced as the Civil War threatened to destroy the Union-well-trodden ground. But Miller's book differs in that it pays closer attention to the moral issues at play, e.g., Lincoln's commuting of the sentences of court-martialed soldiers. Lloyd James's (www.lloydjames.com) narration is competent but lacks energy, and his timing is often off. Really only for dedicated Lincoln aficionados or libraries stocking up on Lincoln biographies to commemorate the 200th anniversary of his February 12 birth. [Audio clip available through www.tantor.com; for a roundup of Lincoln books in this issue, see p. 136; additional reviews of Lincoln audiobooks forthcoming.-Ed.]

Kirkus Reviews

A member of the board of the Abraham Lincoln Institute and the Lincoln Studies Group examines the moral reasoning at the heart of the president's statecraft. Lincoln's graceful and humane exercise of power remains exemplary, a startling assessment, perhaps, of the man who presided over the greatest slaughter in American history. But Lincoln was neither a prophet nor a saint, neither a reformer nor a revolutionary. Rather, he was an engaged, embattled politician who clearly understood the role of settled law and of government and who resisted the temptation to engage in moral posturing. Miller (Ethics and Institutions/Univ. of Virginia; Lincoln's Virtues: An Ethical Biography, 2002, etc.) focuses on Lincoln's moral reasoning, demonstrating how worthy statecraft requires the leader to attend to reality, to the objective situation, to achieve his goals, all the while hewing to certain principles that cannot be compromised. From the time he took the oath of office, the bedrock principle for Lincoln was the preservation of the Union, no mere political power struggle in his mind, but rather an undertaking with vast, universal moral significance: whether a free, constitutional government could sustain itself, whether a successful appeal from ballots to bullets would mean not just diminishing or damaging the American experiment, but rather destroying it. Through this lens, Miller examines Lincoln's leadership under the unique circumstances of civil war in a variety of cases large and small: the decision to resupply Fort Sumter, to issue the Emancipation Proclamation and to enroll freed slaves in the Union army; the exercise of the president's pardon power; the strategies to keep border statesfrom joining the rebellion and to keep foreign powers at bay. While enduring the criticism of opponents, the incompetence or, in George McClellan's case, insubordination of his generals, or horrible battlefield reversals, Lincoln remained a resolute and aggressive war leader, even as he displayed an uncommon charity and largeness of spirit. His remarkable success, Miller makes clear, was attributable not only to his powerful mind, but also to his moral clarity, a seemingly unerring instinct that allowed him to achieve his goals without losing his own or his country's soul. A creative thesis thoroughly explored and beautifully argued.

Table of Contents:

About this Book     ix
Introduction: Honest Abe Among the Rulers     3
A Solemn Oath Registered in Heaven     7
Act Well Your Part, There All the Honor Lies     31
On Mastering the Situation: The Drama of Sumter     48
On Not Mastering the Situation: The Comedy of the Powhatan     72
Days of Choices: Two April Sundays     91
Realism Right at the Border     110
The Moral Meaning of the Union and the War     140
Bull Run and Other Defeats: Lincoln's Resolve     155
On Holding McClellan's Horse     169
The Trent and a Decent Respect for the Opinions of Mankind     193
Too Vast for Malicious Dealing     212
A Second Introduction: Lincoln's Nation Among the Nations     231
I Felt It My Duty to Refuse     235
In Giving Freedom to the Slave, We Assure Freedom to the Free     254
The Prompt Vindication of His Honor     273
And the Promise Being Made, Must Be Kept     289
The Benign Prerogative to Pardon Unfortunate Guilt     314
Must I Shoot a Simple Soldier Boy?     327
A Hard War Without Hatred     351
Temptation in August     370
The Almighty Has His Own Purposes     396
A Conclusion: Abraham Lincoln Among the Immortals     417
Notes     425
Acknowledgments     471
Index     473

See also: Always Talk to Strangers or The Art of Learning

Cobra II: The Inside Story of the Invasion and Occupation of Iraq

Author: Michael R Gordon

There have been many reports about the Iraq war and the vicissitudes of the American occupation, yet none heretofore has been informed by the inside story. Rendered fairly and documented impressively, it offers a galvanizing account of the strategy, the personalities, the actual battles, the diplomacy, the adversary, and the occupation.

Cobra II is stunning work of investigative journalism by Michael Gordon, the chief military correspondent of The New York Times, winner of the George Polk Award for Investigative Reporting in 1989 and the one and only correspondent embedded in Allied land command; and General Bernard E. Trainor, former military correspondent for The New York Times and current military analyst for NBC. Brimming with new and compromising disclosures, the book promises to be a singularly authoritative and comprehensive account of the planning and prosecution of the Iraq war.

Michael Gordon had unparalleled access to top military brass and was in the war room with Tommy Franks, Donald Rumsfeld and the field generals who were key in the formulation and execution of the war strategy. He has interviewed an extraordinary range of officials, including Franks himself, Condoleezza Rice, Steve Hadley, Paul Wolfowitz, Marc Grossman (the third ranking State Department official), Jerry Bremer, General Meyers (Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff), as well as virtually every general, regimental commander and brigade commander. He has had access to classified military and diplomatic documents, military archives and internal after-action reports and oral histories not meant for public consumption.

About the Authors

MICHAEL GORDON is the chief military correspondent for The New York Times. Since he joined the newspaper in 1985, he has covered arms control, the proliferation of nuclear and chemical weapons and other security issues. Mr. Gordon has been posted in Washington, Moscow and London and has covered the United States intervention in Afghanistan, the Persian Gulf War, the Kosovo conflict, NATO's military deployment in Macedonia, the U.S. invasion of Panama and the Russian invasion of Chechnya, among other conflicts. Mr. Gordon is the co-author, along with Bernard E. Trainor, of The Generals' War, a critically acclaimed account of the Persian Gulf conflict.

BERNARD E. TRAINOR, a retired Marine Corps lieutenant general, was a military correspondent for The New York Times from 1986-1990. He was the Director of the National Security Program at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University from 1990-1996. Currently a military analyst for NBC, Trainor lives in Potomac Falls, Virginia.

The Washington Post - Andrew F. Krepinevich

The book's core, however, centers not on Beltway deliberations but on the dash to Baghdad by the Army and the Marines.The authors do a fine job making one of the most lop-sided campaigns in memory interesting, but the surprises that the Americans encounter turn out to be even more compelling. Senior U.S. field commanders soon realize that their principal enemy is not the Iraqi army but irregular forces -- many of them foreigners -- employing guerrilla tactics. These are portents of the full-blown insurgency to come, but no one back in Washington proves capable of connecting the dots.

The New York Times - Sean Naylor

A work of prodigious research, Cobra II will likely become the benchmark by which other histories of the Iraq invasion are measured. Note the word invasion. Cobra II was the name United States commanders gave the operation to depose Saddam Hussein's regime. It is the story of the planning, execution and immediate aftermath of that invasion that is related by Michael R. Gordon, The New York Times's chief military correspondent, and Bernard E. Trainor, a retired Marine Corps lieutenant general and former military correspondent for The Times, in Cobra II.

Publishers Weekly

On one level, narrator Wasson's mostly neutral delivery is apt. The authors' dispassionate prose imparts their impeccably researched story of the 2003 Iraq invasion-from concept to insurgency. Sourced at the highest levels, Cobra II captures the fog of war and war planning. But Wasson's read too often feels routine, as if recounting a local board meeting. Because he renders the numerous players and backdrops with equal tones, differentiating between them can be a challenge. This style of narration creates an anti-tension when juxtaposed with the book's revelations that an invasion plan was being formed not long after September 11, despite administration denials. Strictly supervising the plan was defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who was intent on transforming the military into a lighter, leaner force. False assumptions, faulty intelligence, willful ignorance, personal politics and a lack of foresight all fed into the invasion strategy and subsequent messy outcome. During the audiobook's second half, which documents the march to Baghdad and enemy engagements, Wasson's energy picks up and he paints some impressive scenes of war. But in the end, a more vibrant read would have better complemented the significance of this penetrating work. Gordon reads the introduction and epilogue. Simultaneous release with the Pantheon hardcover. (Mar.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Gordon, chief military corespondent for the New York Times, and NBC military analyst Trainor, retired from the Marine Corps, reportedly got special access for this behind-the-scenes account of preparing for war. With a 12-city tour. Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.