Book Review of DC Confidential
In DC Confidential, former British ambassador to the United States, Sir Christopher Meyer, confirms things that you probably should have known, such as acting National Security Advisor John Bolton being a grumpy conversationalist when confronted at the UN, particularly in its bathroom. At the same time, the book undermines common assumptions, questioning the value and very existence of a special relationship between the US and the UK. DC Confidential provides a detailed account of paradigm shifting conflicts, such as the Cold War and the War on Terror, from a first-person perspective by someone who helped shape them.
The book explores both the personal and the abstract of international relations. Taking assiduous care to frame the intimate nature of diplomacy within its broader theoretical and geopolitical contexts. The author’s treatment of PM Tony Blair’s dealings with the Bush administration highlights this approach. According to his ambassador, for Blair, the special relationship became an end in itself rather than a tool with which to further British national interests, an approach that had damning consequences for both countries. This episode also illuminates a central concern for the author: how individuals in positions of power conceive of broader concepts of security and policy and how these calculations influence or justify their behavior.
It is important to note that the author does not act as an unbiased historian. While his purpose is to document, he does so as a participant with his own understandings as to how and why things occurred the way that they did. Yet, topics and individuals are treated with a seriousness that demands thoughtful argument, which is ever present.
DC Confidential is one book, but many things. It is a memoir, it is historical, and it is also a raucous comedy. Yet, its greatest utility is its tragedy. Calling it tragedy is not to condemn its prose but refers to the fall from grace of many of its protagonists, politicians and their close advisors, which it documents. Most readers will already have strong opinions on the Iraq War and the Global War on Terror, but they will set this book down with an appreciation for the humanity of individuals who shaped these conflicts and how they often framed their actions in accordance with a sense of the ‘greater good.’ The author forces you to confront these realities as well as the question that they demand be reevaluated: how did this all happen? His memoir is an invaluable attempt at providing an answer through an intimate analysis of central characters, their methods, and their motives.
— Dingus