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A see-off ceremony for newly recruited soldiers is held on September 16, 2025, in Fuyang, China. (Getty Images)
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President-elect Donald Trump during a rally at the DeltaPlex Arena, December 9, 2016 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Grand Strategy is the idea that there is a collection of diplomatic, military, and economic policies that deliberately seek to advance the state's interest abroad. Does the United States have a Grand Strategy in foreign affairs? With or without a Grand Strategy, how should Washington use the tools at its disposal to pursue American interests? In his new book, The Big Stick: The Limits of Soft Power and the Necessity of Military Force, former State Department official Eliot Cohen expresses skepticism about the cohesive nature of America’s guiding foreign policy principles. Dr. Cohen nevertheless argues that United States foreign policy requires a credible threat—and the occasional use of military force—to be effective.
On Tuesday, February 21, Dr. Cohen joined Hudson Institute Distinguished Scholar Walter Russell Mead for a conversation about Grand Strategy and President Trump with Hal Brands and Charles Edel.
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At Hudson, Senior Fellows Brendan Brown and Harold Furchtgott-Roth and Mises Institute Senior Fellow Alex Pollock will discuss the book’s findings and how gold-based monetary reform combined with the increased use of modern analytical tools can help end the inflationary spiral.
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