Conversations with Bill Kristol

What role can America play in an increasingly complex and dangerous world—one in which America no longer maintains the overwhelmingly decisive advantage it enjoyed after the end of the Cold War? What steps must the United States take in order to improve its security and standing in a “Post-Post-Cold War" era? Why does American engagement abroad remain important for American safety and prosperity? In this Conversation, Eric Edelman of Johns Hopkins SAIS considers America’s strategic position today. Edelman highlights a clear decline in America’s military and diplomatic capacities as well as the growing strength of foreign competitors and rivals. To confront the challenge, Edelman calls for reforms in key institutions and practices—and a renewed commitment on the part of the American people to defend the liberal international order. This is a must-see Conversation for anyone interested in America’s role in the world.

What is the status of freedom of speech, freedom of thought, and liberal education on university campuses today? How has modern feminism shaped the modern university? In this Conversation, Harvey Mansfield considers some of the central issues and tensions in higher education today. Describing his own recent “disinvitation” from giving a commencement address at Concordia University in Montreal, Mansfield argues that the incident has much to teach us about current attitudes toward freedom of speech—and the importance of modern feminism in shaping these attitudes. Kristol and Mansfield also discuss the state of liberal education and free speech on campus and in America as a whole.

What are the roots of our idea of “meritocracy”? Why has meritocracy become a subject of intense scrutiny in our politics? Can there be a legitimate meritocracy? In this Conversation, James Hankins, a professor of history at Harvard University, presents a historically learned and deeply relevant account of the idea of meritocracy. According to Hankins, our current idea of meritocracy is closely tied to the post-French Revolution effort to replace the old hereditary elite with a new elite based on talent or merit. Over time, however, our idea of merit has become more narrowly focused on scientific capability—and has avoided questions about the humanities. Hankins points both to the Renaissance in the West and Confucianism in China as important sources for revitalizing the notion that moral virtue is important to teach, and for prospective rulers to understand. In sum, Hankins presents a fascinating account of meritocracy in China, America, and the West as a whole.

The speeches of Abraham Lincoln are well known for their enduring importance in the history of the United States. But they also remain incredibly significant as texts—works of political rhetoric that have much to teach us about the nature of politics and the American regime. In this Conversation with Bill Kristol, Diana Schaub, a professor of political science at Loyola University Maryland and a preeminent scholar of American political thought, demonstrates the depth of Lincoln’s speeches through an interpretation of two of his greatest orations: “The Lyceum Address” (1838) and “The Gettysburg Address” (1863). Schaub considers “The Lyceum Address” as a profound reflection on the dangers of democracy and why “rational reverence” for the law will be indispensable for the perpetuation of America’s political institutions. In a magnificent interpretation of the “The Gettysburg Address,” she explains how, for Lincoln, the Civil War was a trial not only about the future of the United States, but about the very possibility of self-government. This is a must-listen Conversation for anyone interested in American history, political philosophy, and statesmanship.

Is China already a serious strategic threat to the United States? If so, how should the United States respond to its rise as a regional and global power? In this Conversation with Bill Kristol, Aaron Friedberg, professor of political science and international affairs at Princeton University, argues that a rising China is now the most significant foreign policy challenge facing the United States. Reviewing recent history, Friedberg notes that America since the end of the Cold War has pursued a policy of greater engagement with China, believing that the country would ultimately liberalize politically. As Friedberg explains, this has not happened. Rather, the Chinese Communist Party has increasingly attempted to shape the world system in ways favorable to China and detrimental both to the security and economic well-being of the United States. Friedberg calls for economic, technological, and diplomatic efforts by the U.S. to meet the challenge from China.

Surveys tell us that Americans are increasingly dissatisfied with government institutions—from Congress and federal agencies to state and local governments. Given our aversion to taxes and bureaucracy, why do we demand the government do so much? And what can be done to improve the quality of our government's performance? In this provocative Conversation, University of Pennsylvania political scientist John J. Dilulio, Jr. argues that America does not have enough government workers to accomplish the tasks we demand of our government. Dilulio points to the paradox that we have not witnessed any increase in the federal workforce since the mid-1960s, while government spending has exploded since that time. Instead, the federal government has increasingly outsourced work to for-profit contractors, state and local employees who are de-facto federal workers, as well as non-profit workers. Making matters worse, we do not give the federal workers the discretion and oversight necessary to achieve good results. This “government by proxy,” according to Dilulio, is plagued by a lack of accountability, out-of-control spending, and poor outcomes. This is a must-listen podcast for anyone interested in the inner workings of American government.

Born in 1950 in New York City and raised in Montreal, Charles Krauthammer, who died on June 21, 2018, was an indispensable voice in American public life for nearly four decades. His writing and speaking—covering politics, religion, technology, sports, and many other subjects—enriched American public life in a profound way. A staunch defender of American exceptionalism, he was one of the most eloquent writers of his generation. As Bill Kristol put it, he was that “rare combination of extraordinary courage and intellect.” Originally released in April 2015, this Conversation covers his education, his political reflections from the 1980s through to the present day, his upbringing in Quebec, his work in medicine, and his attachment to Israel and Zionism. In it, some of Krauthammer's extraordinary wisdom, wit, and character come through.

Why is Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America the best book “ever written on democracy and the best ever written on America?” Why is it indispensable both for understanding the country as well as defending it? In this Podcast, Harvey Mansfield, co-translator of Democracy in America (with Delba Winthrop), presents a detailed exposition of Tocqueville’s masterwork. Mansfield considers the major themes of Tocqueville’s work, including Tocqueville’s treatment of the idea of rights, the role of religion, men and women, self-government, and the relationship of liberty and equality. As Mansfield explains, Democracy in America advocates a more “political” version of the liberalism propagated by Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and other modern political philosophers. Americans, in Tocqueville’s account, learn the practice of self-government through the institutions they inherit and build upon. American practice therefore elevates the country and citizens above the individualism and narrow materialism that can follow from a liberalism too literally applied from a theory—e.g., the “state of nature.” As Mansfield puts it, Tocqueville remains even in our time the greatest resource we have for “defending a defensible liberalism.”

How should we think about global warming and climate change? How can we develop a sensible strategy to confront a problem for which the risks are inherently difficult to predict with accuracy? And how might the risks from climate change compare with other threats we'll face in the years ahead? In this Podcast, Jim Manzi, a leading technology entrepreneur, shares his perspective. In contrast to the maximalism we often hear in debates about climate change—“is the world going to end?” or “is this a hoax?”—Manzi urges us to think quantitatively about climate change and to pursue a strategy that would allow us to deal with a range of possible outcomes. Manzi explains why the predictions about climate are inherently uncertain—and warns against taxation that would not meaningfully affect climate change but would empower rivals to the United States like China. Instead, Manzi recommends “technology rather than taxation,” a strategy that emphasizes public and private investment in ambitious research toward technologies that will equip us to meet possible challenges and threats from climate change in the years to come.

On how we can sustain economic growth, spur innovation, improve productivity, and ensure greater prosperity for the middle class. In this Conversation, businessman and best-selling author Edward Conard shares his perspective on how America can achieve these objectives. Conard counters the commonplace view, today, that the American middle class has been hollowed out and that economic mobility has stagnated. While recognizing a slowdown in productivity and growth in recent years, Conard considers the overall strength and diversity of the American economy, and the relative growth in middle-class incomes in America compared to peer groups in Europe as well as Japan. According to Conard, we must prioritize innovation and growth in order to meet today’s challenges—and he cites America’s opportunity to increase high-skilled immigration as the single best way to jumpstart innovation and productivity now and in the years to come.