Michael O'Hanlon

Brookings Institution senior fellow, director of research in its Foreign Policy program, and Philip H. Knight Chair in Defense and Strategy. He specializes in U.S. defense strategy, military force, and national security policy and is the author of “To Dare Mighty Things: U.S. Defense Strategy Since the Revolution.”

American Strategy Succeeds When Force Serves Bounded Political Aims

Brookings senior fellow Michael O’Hanlon argues in To Dare Mighty Things that American strategy works best when military power, alliances and deterrence serve a bounded political purpose—and fails when force is asked to remake societies or achieve ends leaders have not clearly defined. In a conversation with Hoover’s Michael Boskin, O’Hanlon calls this approach “resolute restraint”: maintain credible power and defend vital interests, but commit to war only when its objectives, means and durable political support align.

Hoover InstitutionAug 24, 202616 min read