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NORMS, POLITICIZATION, AND THE MILITARY PROFESSION

There is a global trend of increased politicization of the military in eroding democracies, some of which are allies of the United States. Risa Brooks joins host Carrie Lee to shed light on the evolving dynamics between political leaders and the military. Brooks discusses the trend of political leaders using the military for their own gain. She emphasizes the importance of military elites resisting this politicization to uphold democratic principles and prevent the military’s use for partisan purposes. The discussion also underscores the crucial role of professional military education in instilling a deep understanding of democratic norms and ethical boundaries in military service. The episode aims to raise awareness about this critical issue and encourage military professionals to uphold their commitment to democratic values.

If you don’t have deep internalization of democratic principles, a military is going to be much more vulnerable to the types of politicization I’ve spoken about.

Risa Brooks is Allis-Chalmers Professor of Political Science at Marquette University, senior fellow at West Point’s Modern War Institute (2017-2020), and a non-resident senior associate in the International Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Professor Brooks is the author of Shaping Strategy: The Civil-Military Politics of Strategic Assessment (Princeton University Press, 2008). She is also coeditor (with Lionel Beehner and Daniel Maurer) of Reconsidering American Civil-Military Relations: Politics, Society and Modern War (Oxford University Press) and coeditor (with Elizabeth Stanley) of Creating Military Power: The Sources of Military Effectiveness (Stanford University Press, 2007). She received her Ph.D. from the University of California, San Diego, and her professional experiences include positions as research associate at the International Institute for Strategic Studies and postdoctoral fellow at Stanford’s Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC). She has served as associate editor for the academic journals International Security and Security Studies.

Carrie A. Lee is an associate professor at the U.S. Army War College, where she serves as the chair of the Department of National Security and Strategy and director of the USAWC Center on Civil-Military Relations. She received her Ph.D. in political science from Stanford University and a B.S. from MIT.

The views expressed in this presentation are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Army War College, U.S. Army, or Department of Defense.

Photo Credit: Created by Gemini AI

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