Confront and Conceal: Obama's Secret Wars and Surprising Use of American Power
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Confront and Conceal: Obama's Secret Wars and Surprising Use of American Power Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Robertson Dean (Narrator), David E. Sanger (Author), Random House Audio (Publisher)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 174 ratings
See all formats and editions

From inside Obama's situation room…

…the critical moments in the covert war against Iran, the struggles to deal with a recalcitrant Pakistan and its fast-growing nuclear arsenal, the tensions with the American military over Afghanistan and with allies swept up in the chaos of the Arab Spring.

Three and a half years ago, David Sanger's book The Inheritance: The World Obama Confronts and the Challenges to American Power described how a new American president came to office with the world on fire. Now, just as the 2012 presidential election battle begins, Sanger follows up with an eye-opening, news-packed account of how Obama has dealt with those challenges, relying on innovative weapons and reconfigured tools of American power to try to manage a series of new threats. Sanger describes how Obama’s early idealism about fighting “a war of necessity” in Afghanistan quickly turned to fatigue and frustration, how the early hopes that the Arab Spring would bring about a democratic awakening slipped away, and how an effort to re-establish American power in the Pacific set the stage for a new era of tensions with the world’s great rising power, China.

As the world seeks to understand the contours of the Obama Doctrine, Confront and Conceal is a fascinating, unflinching account of these complex years, in which the president and his administration have found themselves struggling to stay ahead in a world where power is diffuse and America's ability to exert control grows ever more elusive.

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  1. Listening Length
    15 hours and 3 minutes
  2. Author
    David E. Sanger
  3. Narrator
    Robertson Dean
  4. Audible release date
    June 5, 2012
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Random House Audio
  7. ASIN
    B0088VP5EE
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
  10. See all details
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Product details

Listening Length 15 hours and 3 minutes
Author David E. Sanger
Narrator Robertson Dean
Whispersync for Voice Ready
Audible.com Release Date June 05, 2012
Publisher Random House Audio
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B0088VP5EE
Best Sellers Rank #56,962 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals)
#35 in Military Science
#49 in National & International Security (Audible Books & Originals)
#65 in 21st Century History

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
174 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Traveling T
5.0 out of 5 stars Page turner, insightful
Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2012
Verified Purchase
This book is a page turner; an incredible read for anyone interested in foreign policy. More than just a referendum on Obama, I found the book to very clearly present the numerous foreign policy issues and sensitivities facing the United States. Specifically, I now have a much better insight into the different dynamics at play during the Arab Spring and why the United States decided to intervene in Libya but not in Syria.

A few folks on this board have given the book poor reviews, claiming that it panders to Obama and the left. I did not find this to be the case. My feeling is that given the current state of politics, many on the right are unable to read anything about Obama without a deep sense of cynicism. Yes, Sanger does give credit to Obama on several fronts; he certainly does make Obama look tough. However, there are numerous criticisms of the Obama Administration. He also gives praise to Bush 41 for his covert work at the end of his administration. Based upon this book, I'd guess that Sanger would give Obama a B- grade thus far in his presidency.
6 people found this helpful
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Park Ave
4.0 out of 5 stars Get it and think for yourself
Reviewed in the United States on June 10, 2012
Verified Purchase
This book and a few related articles have riled political Washington for the past week. Sanger obviously had very high access, has sourced his open facts very well and wrote an excellent book. Here's a great inside look at the past three years of diplomacy, covert action and internal Administration deliberations.

I won't give another summary here; others already have. I will echo another reviewer's irritation at Sanger's introduction of Obama as "typical dovish Democrat" and transition to "Hawk." Sanger needed to tell a story here; like many in the Washington press corps, he is shocked (SHOCKED!) to find the President would act like either a "Hawk" or a politician. Sanger has difficulty moving away from that bit of conventional wisdom, an understandable problem given his own position as a New York Times reporter.

The only other point the book seems to lack is a deeper discussion of the legal and geo-political ramifications of nation-states' use of cyberwarfare in peacetime. Sanger brings up the point of nations using military-designed computer programs to weaken or spy upon other nations. Is this an act of war? Where is that line to be drawn? Sanger asks the question but doesn't search very far for his own position, nor does he look to any other outside voices on the subject.

So, we have an extended news article here, focusing on several challenges to the United States around the world and how this Administration has met them, for good or ill. Sanger doesn't take much of a position of his own, but this won't stop reviewers, talking heads, the left-wing blogosphere or right-wing shriek radio from spinning this book to their own ends. I believe this book is worth the money to read and decide for yourself.
54 people found this helpful
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Higgidy
5.0 out of 5 stars Chilling look into foreign policy and tuff decisions...
Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2012
Verified Purchase
Read it, pure and simple. I got the audio version and the hard copy. The narrator will grow on you, I promise. In the beggining you may not think so, but stick with it. You will really grow to love the guy. David does a nice job diving into hidden secrets here. I do however think this should have all remained secret, but in the end, I'm glad I read it. I personally think the press is part of the problem, but you won't see David touching on any of those points. He does jab both parties fairly equally here, so don't worry about partisan disgust if you are pondering on that point alone. Read it if your on the left or the right. You will get great knowledge and information either way, all while seeing the president and most anyone near him get jabbed for all kinds of reasons. Some likely very warranted, some done out of pure lack of true facts, but thats the press. I loved the book and love David's writing style. Enjoy.
3 people found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
3.0 out of 5 stars Obama-worship and Bush-bashing in ink
Reviewed in the United States on June 7, 2012
Verified Purchase
Some episodes are startling and the review of recent history good but from the start the book reads as a paean to the president, continuously comparing him favorably with his predecessor. That wouldn't be a problem if the author's subjective judgments matched the facts:

"There was nothing in Obama's personal history and little in his campaign rhetoric that prepared his supporters or his allies for his embrace of hard, covert power..."The surprise is his aggressiveness," one of the country's most experienced career diplomats told me -" (Kindle Locations 142-153) celebrates the author. That is false, however, as Obama was the only candidate who publicly vowed to intervene in Pakistan without the permission of the Pakistani government.

"He comes at issues completely differently than Bush did," said a senior official who dealt with them both for many years. "Obama worries far more about collateral damage, about the precedent the United States sets when it acts. But when it's decision time about whether to order a strike, or use a certain kind of weapon, he often comes out pretty close to where Bush did." (Kindle Locations 144-147). Another way to put it would be to say that Bush struck while the iron was hot, whereas Obama wasted opportunities and risked letting targets escape by wringing his hands first!

These and similar errors of fact and questionable interpretation serve to demean subsequent original parts of the book, for how can us readers know how much the author's ideology, selective ignorance, and desire to remain in Obama's good books cloud the context he composes of the new facts he presents to us?
39 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Akshay Bhatia
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in India on January 16, 2016
Verified Purchase
Extremely interesting
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Dr. Raad Chalabi
5.0 out of 5 stars A very enjoyable read for those who are keen to understand 21st century power-politics.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 27, 2014
Verified Purchase
This thrilling book allows you to live through the decision mechanisms that map world politics today. The historical 'story-line' for each of the political decisions covered in the book is elegantly narrated by someone who obviously had extensive access to the decision-makers of the Obama administration.
One person found this helpful
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Luis Fornelos
5.0 out of 5 stars Sir
Reviewed in France on April 8, 2013
Verified Purchase
Excellent book, very in-dept about Obama's politics and how he treated several very sensitive work cases, either through the use of conventional methods or brand new, state-of-art artifices
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Robing
4.0 out of 5 stars A good read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 30, 2013
Verified Purchase
An interesting read which, if true, just reminds me of how devious our politicians really are. However, it gives a good insight into how all governments work and think.
One person found this helpful
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