The Kennedys in the World: How Jack, Bobby, and Ted Remade America's Empire

by Lawrence J. Haas Narrated by David de Vries

Overview

The Kennedys in the World tells a new, rich, fascinating, and consequential story about Jack, Bobby, and Ted Kennedy. From an early age the brothers developed a deep understanding of the different peoples, cultures, and ideologies around the world; a keen appreciation for the challenges that such differences created for the United States; and a strong desire to reshape America's response to them.



From their childhoods in the first half of the twentieth century, the brothers were prodded by their ruthless, demanding, win-at-all-costs father, Joe Kennedy, and their cold and distant mother, Rose, to learn and care about the world-and told they could shape America's role in it. For more than six decades after World War II, the brothers shaped broad issues of war and peace as well as the U.S. response to almost every major global challenge of their times: the Soviet Union and China, the Cold War and Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Chile, Nicaragua and El Salvador, Korea and Vietnam, South Africa and Northern Ireland, and Iraq (twice).



In their time, America was what it remains today-the world's greatest power, with roles and responsibilities that stretch across the planet. Consequently, as the brothers remade America's empire, they invariably changed the world.

Editorial Reviews

Library Journal

02/05/2021

Journalist Haas, a former senior White House official and a current fellow at the American Foreign Policy Council, revisits the familiar saga of the Kennedy brothers and examines their role in the making of U.S. foreign policy. His book begins with John F. Kennedy's political apprenticeship in the late 1940s and ends with Ted Kennedy's death in 2009. He explains how both John and Robert Kennedy started their careers as Cold Warriors; John was critical of Eisenhower's policies, while Robert aligned himself with Joseph McCarthy's anti-communism views. As president, John focused on competition with the Soviet Union and was concerned about the international image of the United States. Haas discusses how John relied on Robert's advice after the Bay of Pigs fiasco and regretted not appointing his brother as CIA director. After John's assassination, Robert tangled with Lyndon B. Johnson on various foreign policy decisions, especially sending troops to the Dominican Republic and the escalation in Vietnam. Ted also became more vocal and spoke eloquently in the Senate about the human costs of the war. The last section of the book focuses on his foreign policy priorities and achievements. VERDICT This extensively researched and engaging book will appeal to anyone interested in post-war American history, foreign policy, and the Kennedy family.—Thomas Karel, Franklin & Marshall Coll. Lib., Lancaster, PA

Product Details

BN ID:	2940172775574
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Publication date:	08/17/2021
Edition description:	Unabridged

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