Niall Ferguson: World Order: Brexit, Populism and Kissinger

Conversations host Harry Kreisler welcomes historian Niall Ferguson of the Hoover Institution who is the 2016 Underhill Lecturer at Berkeley. After discussing  the importance of Anglo American Studies, and the implications of the wave of populism sweeping the West, including  Brexit and the Trump phenomena, the conversation turns to an in depth look at  Ferguson’s recent book on Kissinger, 1923-1969, The Idealist.  Ferguson details the evolution of Kissinger’s thinking about international affairs up until the time he assumes the position of national security advisor under President Nixon,. He chronicles the influence of mentors (Kraemer and Elliot), the impact of experience (service in military intelligence and Harvard education), and the evidence of Kissinger’s writings on international order and on nculear weapons.  The conversation concludes by highlighting the themes that emerge from Kissinger’s intellectual evolution in the period before he assumes power