Law and the Long War - by Benjamin Wittes (Paperback)

About the Book

Wittes offers the first nonpartisan critique of a crucial front in America's war on terror--the legal battles fought by and among the Bush administration, the U.S. Congress, and the Supreme Court.

Book Synopsis

An authoritative assessment of the new laws of war and a sensible and sophisticated roadmap for the future of liberty in the Age of Terror

America is losing a crucial front in the ongoing war on terror. It is losing not to Al Qaeda, but to its own failure to construct a set of laws that will protect the American people during this global conflict. As debate continues to rage over the legality and ethics of war, Benjamin Wittes enters the fray with a sober-minded exploration of law in wartime that is definitive, accessible, and nonpartisan. Outlining how this country came to its current impasse over human rights and counterterrorism, Law and the Long War paves the way toward fairer, more accountable rules for a conflict without end.

Review Quotes

" A rich and thoughtful volume . . . Law and the Long War addresses an impressively broad range of questions."
-Los Angeles Times

" Law and the Long War deserves to be read widely. It is one of the most balanced and nonpolemic accounts of legal issues in the war on terror to date."
-Foreign Affairs

" A strong case for adjusting our policies so that the public can support them more robustly."
-The Wall Street Journal

About the Author

Benjamin Wittes is a Fellow and Research Director in Public Law at the Brookings Institution. A former editorial writer for The Washington Post specializing in legal affairs, Wittes currently writes a column for The New Republic online and is a contributing editor for The Atlantic Monthly. He is a member of the Hoover Institution Task Force on National Security and Law.