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Richard G. Lugar, Statesman of the Senate
Crafting Foreign Policy from Capitol Hill
by John T. Shaw
Published by: Indiana University Press
280 Pages
- eBook
- 9780253007117
- Published: March 2012
$9.99
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Two-time chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Richard G. Lugar has been one of the most widely respected foreign policy experts in Congress for over three decades. In this illuminating profile, John T. Shaw examines Lugar's approach to lawmaking and diplomacy for what it reveals about the workings of the Senate and changes in that institution. Drawing on interviews with Lugar and other leading figures in foreign policy, Shaw chronicles Lugar's historic work on nuclear proliferation, arms control, energy, and global food issues, highlighting the senator's ability to influence American foreign policy in consequential ways. The book presents Lugar's career as an example of the role Congress can play in the shaping of foreign policy in an era of a strong executive branch. It demonstrates the importance of statesmanship in contemporary American political life while acknowledging the limitations of this approach to governance.
John T. Shaw has covered Congress since 1991 as a congressional correspondent and vice president with Market News International and as a contributing writer for the Washington Diplomat magazine. He is the author of The Ambassador: Inside the Life of a Working Diplomat and Washington Diplomacy: Profiles of People of World Influence. He has been a Hoover Institution Media Fellow and is a frequent commentator for C-SPAN and public radio.
"Takes us on a fascinating journey through the political life of a giant in American foreign policy. . . . An impressive account of Richard Lugar's rich political work and versatile political persona."
~Jan Eliasson, Former President, United Nations General Assembly; Former Swedish Foreign Minister
"John T. Shaw's Richard G. Lugar, Statesman of the Senate delivers on his commitment to examine this long-serving Indiana senator as an important player in the foreign policy process. Shaw argues that Senator Lugar stands out in the modern U.S. Senate as a member who seeks to shape and affect American foreign policy for the mid- and long-term future benefit of the nation. . . . A significant piece of reporting, description, and analysis that will be useful as a case study for legislative and American foreign policy scholars."
~David Hadley, Wabash College
"Makes a strong case that Senator Lugar belongs among the upper echelon of senators by focusing on Lugar's sustained activities regarding nuclear weapons, energy policy, foreign aid, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and agriculture and global food crises."
~Andrew Downs, Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne and Director, Mike Downs Center for Indiana Politics
"An account that is well-titled. Dick Lugar is a true 'statesman of the Senate' who, from the Reagan years to the present, has had a major influence on US foreign policy."
~George P. Shultz
"A close-up look at the dedication, effectiveness, and outstanding public service of Senator Dick Lugar."
~Former Senator Sam Nunn
"John Shaw deploys his reportorial skills to excellent effect in evaluating the considerable impact that Senator Lugar has had on foreign policy . . . . The result is a trenchant study of statesmanship as practiced from the legislative branch of our government."
~Strobe Talbott, President, Brookings Institution
"Rewarding reading. . . . Even non-wonks and Senate-haters will find Shaw's book easy going. Those who like public policy, want a closer look at the inner workings of the Senate, or know something of Senator Lugar, will love it."
~Bill Frenzel, Brookings Institution; Former Member of Congress
"Author John Shaw's carefully researched, readable picture of Lugar's policy oversight shows that bipartisanship and public service need not be oxymorons in a cynical political age."
~National Catholic Reporter
"...[D]elves deeply into Lugar's foreign policy work, and Shaw finds some criticism of the otherwise well-regarded senator—particularly on the Iraq war, which Lugar questioned, but didn't cross his party on."
~Washington Post "In the Loop"
"[A] well-researched account. . . . [Shaw] points out weaknesses in Lugar's career. . . [and] gives a convincing description of Lugar's 'considerable legislative legacy.'"
~Publishers Weekly