Though George W. Bush claims to have been a decisive president, in this revealing book, Daniel Zoughbie shows that in practice Bush was dangerously indecisive when it came to the all-important Middle East peace process. For anyone concerned about the causes of war and the prospects for peace between the Israelis and Palestinians, Indecision Points is an essential read.
Fawaz A. Gerges, Professor of the International Relations of the Middle East, London School of Economics, and author of The New Middle East: Protest and Revolution in the Arab World
Daniel Zoughbie's book is essential reading for those who want to understand the policies of the George W. Bush administration toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Drawing on rich interviews with participants, Zoughbie provides a detailed history that reveals much about key internal debates, the disagreements of leading officials, and the beliefs that guided U.S. policies. This book offers deep insight into how the Bush foreign policy machine operated, insights that will be of interest far beyond the Levant.
Jeremy Pressman, associate professor of political science and director of Middle East studies, University of Connecticut, and author of Warring Friends: Alliance Restraint in International Politics
For anyone wishing to understand the reasons for America's disastrous failures in the Middle East in the post-9/11 era, this book will be a very good place to start. Daniel Zoughbie offers a fascinating account of the part played by the Bush administration in the diplomacy surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He begins by illuminating the underlying philosophical assumptions that shaped America's broader engagement with the Middle East. His compelling argument is that George W. Bush never decided between the moralist and the realist positions and, as a result, his policy was incoherent and ineffective. It is a story with no end of a lesson. The book should therefore be required reading for the makers of American policy toward this endlessly complex and troubled region.
Avi Shlaim, professor of international relations, University of Oxford, and author of The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World
Aptly titled, Indecision Points reveals not only the indecisiveness behind the Bush administration's foreign policy in the Middle East but also its unproductive and even damaging effects on the peace process today. Drawing on compelling interviews, research, analysis, and his own deep knowledge of the issues, Daniel Zoughbie offers his readers an understanding as to why America and the international community at large cannot afford to turn their backs on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict—or even worse, be indecisive about it.
James D. Wolfensohn, former President of the World Bank and Special Envoy for Gaza Disengagement
Daniel Zoughbie's book is essential reading for those who want to understand the policies of the George W. Bush administration toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Drawing on rich interviews with participants, Zoughbie provides a detailed history that reveals much about key internal debates, the disagreements of leading officials, and the beliefs that guided U.S. policies. This book offers deep insight into how the Bush foreign policy machine operated, insights that will be of interest far beyond the Levant.
Jeremy Pressman, Associate Professor of Political Science and Director of Middle East Studies, University of Connecticut, and author of Warring Friends: Alliance Restraint in International Politics
Zoughbie reveals Bush as a man whose tentative yet hubristic forays into international affairs were overtaken by events, with his positions changing from day to day.
Publishers Weekly
… a convincing and insightful account into the infighting in the Bush administration and the effect this had on the region.
Journal of Peace Research
In this rigorously researched and very informative book, Zoughbie (Univ. of California, Berkeley) examines the experience of the George W. Bush administration in dealing with the Arab-Israeli conflict. Highly recommended.
Choice
