Newspaper Article - The New York Times

From George to Barack: A Look at Secret Bush Memos to the Obama Team

    Author:
  • Peter Baker
| Feb. 14, 2023

WASHINGTON — The world was a volatile place when President George W. Bush was leaving office. So on the way out the door, he and his national security team left a little advice for their successors:

India is a friend. Pakistan is not. Don’t trust North Korea or Iran, but talking is still better than not. Watch out for Russia; it covets the territory of its neighbor Ukraine. Beware becoming ensnared by intractable land wars in the Middle East and Central Asia. And oh yes, nation-building is definitely harder than it looks.

Want to Read More?

The full text of this publication is available via The New York Times.
Read Full Article
For more information on this publication: Belfer Communications Office
For Academic Citation:

Baker, Peter. “From George to Barack: A Look at Secret Bush Memos to the Obama Team.” The New York Times. The New York Times, February 15, 2023. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/14/us/politics/bush-obama-memos.html.

The Author

Peter Baker

Related

Meghan O'Sullivan

Meghan L. O'Sullivan

  • Jeane Kirkpatrick Professor of the Practice of International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School
  • Member of the Board, Belfer Center
  • Faculty Affiliate, Middle East Initiative
Expertise:
Recommended
In the Spotlight
RSS
The U.S. and Canada must work together on Arctic climate challenges that have global impacts, from intensifying wildfires and thawing permafrost to endangered Indigenous subsistence and a changing Arctic Ocean, write John P. Holdren and Fran Ulmer.
We’re going to need every tool in the toolkit, including CCUS, to solve the climate crisis, argues Mohammed Al-Juaied. CCUS projects are already burying millions of tons of CO2 each year, but that’s a drop in the bucket compared to what’s needed, he says.
When the Boston Marathon bombing took place 10 years ago, the City’s detailed disaster preparedness plan kicked in and helped save numerous lives, Juliette Kayyem and other experts said in a recent discussion of lessons learned in the wake of the tragedy.
Most Viewed

Tags