Drift

Drift: The Unmooring of American Military Power
Rachel Maddow

The title of this book is a little misleading, as it refers to the quite deliberate (if gradually achieved) unmooring of American military power. Detached from political oversight, the military has in recent years become an appendage of a power-hungry “Imperial” executive. From Vietnam to the ongoing conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, the downward trend has been evident. Maddow, a popular, left-leaning cable television host, is an engaging writer, but she’s peddling a simple and obvious thesis here and doesn’t bring any fresh reporting or insight to bear on the subject.