Doomed to Succeed: The U.S.-Israel Relationship from Truman to Obama

Winner of the National Jewish Book Award's Gerrard and Ella Berman Memorial Award in History.

A necessary and unprecedented account of America's changing relationship with Israel

When it comes to Israel, U.S. policy has, for some time, emphasized the unbreakable bond between the two countries and our ironclad commitment to Israel's security. Today our ties to Israel are close--so close that when there are differences, they tend to make the news. But it was not always this way.

Dennis Ross has been a direct participant in shaping U.S. policy toward the Middle East, and Israel specifically, for nearly thirty years. He served in senior roles, including as Bill Clinton's envoy for Arab-Israeli peace, and was an active player in the debates over how Israel fit into the region and what should guide our policies. In Doomed to Succeed, he takes us through every administration from Truman's to Obama's, throwing into dramatic relief each president's attitude toward Israel and the region, the often tumultuous debates between key advisers, and the events that drove the policies and at times led to a shift in approach.

Ross points out how distancing the United States from Israel in the Eisenhower, Nixon, first Bush, and Obama administrations never yielded any benefits and explains why that lesson has never been learned. Doomed to Succeed offers compelling advice about how the priorities of Arab leaders can be understood and how future administrations might best shape U.S. policy in that light.