Stephen Biddle
Encyclopedia
Stephen Biddle is an American author
, historian
, columnist
, and pundit whose work concentrates on U.S. foreign policy. He is perhaps best known for his award-winning 2004 book Military Power: Explaining Victory and Defeat in Modern Battle, published through Princeton University Press
. He also has worked in groups under Generals Stanley McChrystal and David Petraeus
forming U.S. counter-insurgency policy.
. His parents frequently discussed politics, and they welcomed his input. Biddle later remarked that such debates took place "from almost as far back as I can remember" and that his father expressly encouraged him to think for himself. Biddle spent a lot of his childhood reading about military history and foreign affairs.
Biddle attempted to pursue a career in tort law as a Harvard undergraduate, but he soon gave that up. He worked in internships in Washington D.C. that involved studying U.S. defense policy, but he remained skeptical as to whether he could (as he later put it) "actually make a living and pay the rent and eat regularly while doing this." Biddle earned a Bachelor's Degree
in Fine Arts from Harvard, which had mostly involved reviewing art history
, in 1981.
His first job after earning his degree was at a public policy think tank
in the Washington, D.C.
area that worked with the Office of the Secretary of Defense
. He went on to operate 400,000-line Fortran
models of combat scenarios outcomes between the Warsaw Pact
and NATO from 1981 to 1983. Biddle's suspicions about the model's accuracy and about Defense Department
statistical planning in general would later inspire the material in his first book, Military Power: Explaining Victory and Defeat in Modern Battle.
Biddle earned a Master's Degree
in 1985 and then a Doctor of Philosophy
in 1992-- both of those from Harvard and both focusing on American public policy. He later joked, "I got to know every bad restaurant in Harvard Square very well by the time I was done!" Biddle felt particularly inspired by mentor
professors Albert Carnesale
and Michael Nacht, political science
experts who have since moved to U.C. Berkeley
.
(CFR), which he joined in January 2006. He formerly worked as an associate professor and Elihu Root chair of military studies at the U.S. Army War College
's Strategic Studies Institute
. His popular interest writings have appeared in multiple publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, The International Herald Tribune, and The Guardian.
Biddle's career has also included research and teaching posts at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
, the Institute for Defense Analyses
(IDA), Harvard’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
(BCSIA), and Harvard's Kennedy School of Government's Office of National Security Programs.
He published Military Power: Explaining Victory and Defeat in Modern Battle through Princeton University Press
in 2004. The book has won multiple writing awards including CFR's Arthur Ross Award Silver Medal
for 2005 and the 2005 Huntington Prize from the Olin Institute for Strategic Studies.
Biddle received the U.S. Army Superior Civilian Service Medal in 2003 and again in 2006. He received the U.S. Army Commander’s Award for Public Service in 2007 as well. Within the U.S. military, he served on General Stanley McChrystal’s Initial Strategic Assessment Team in Kabul
in 2009, on General David Petraeus
’ Joint Strategic Assessment Team in Baghdad
in 2007, and as a Senior Advisor to General Petraeus
’ Central Command Assessment Team in Washington in 2008-2009.
with specific aims and specifically defined enemies. He criticized the administration's approach as "quite vague". He called the Bush doctrine of 'rollback', in which the U.S. tries to end the root cause of terrorism
by replacing failing autocracies
in the Arab world
with democracies
, "a very demanding program" but a legitimate, reasonable view.
He also remarked in 2006 that the War in Afghanistan
had progressively grown more difficult for American forces since, at first, they fought untrained, amateur Taliban-related militants. Yet later on, according to Biddle, American forces began fighting well-trained foreign agents such as al-Qaeda
operatives that incorporate Western-style infantry tactics. Biddle referred to the Afghan war in mid-2009 as "perhaps the most controversial and divisive issue in U.S. defense policy".
In addition, he stated that counterinsurgency operations historically tend to fail, with only about a 25% success rate. However, he argued that the U.S. has a compellingly strong national interest in security and stability for the region. Biddle wrote that the best policy is "to defend an expensive, risky, potentially unpopular war with an argument that is sound but ultimately indirect and a close call on the merits." He praised the Obama administration
's actions, labeling the President "a perhaps uniquely skilled political communicator", but Biddle cautioned that Obama faces "a very hard sell indeed."
Biddle has argued generally about the U.S. military and its history,
He has stated about U.S. power and prestige,
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
, columnist
Columnist
A columnist is a journalist who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs....
, and pundit whose work concentrates on U.S. foreign policy. He is perhaps best known for his award-winning 2004 book Military Power: Explaining Victory and Defeat in Modern Battle, published through Princeton University Press
Princeton University Press
-Further reading:* "". Artforum International, 2005.-External links:* * * * *...
. He also has worked in groups under Generals Stanley McChrystal and David Petraeus
David Petraeus
David Howell Petraeus is the current Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, sworn in on September 6, 2011. Prior to his assuming the directorship of the CIA, Petraeus was a four-star general serving over 37 years in the United States Army. His last assignments in the Army were as commander...
forming U.S. counter-insurgency policy.
Education and early career
Biddle grew up in Wilmington, DelawareWilmington, Delaware
Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States, and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Creek, near where the Christina flows into the Delaware River. It is the county seat of New Castle County and one of the major cities in the Delaware Valley...
. His parents frequently discussed politics, and they welcomed his input. Biddle later remarked that such debates took place "from almost as far back as I can remember" and that his father expressly encouraged him to think for himself. Biddle spent a lot of his childhood reading about military history and foreign affairs.
Biddle attempted to pursue a career in tort law as a Harvard undergraduate, but he soon gave that up. He worked in internships in Washington D.C. that involved studying U.S. defense policy, but he remained skeptical as to whether he could (as he later put it) "actually make a living and pay the rent and eat regularly while doing this." Biddle earned a Bachelor's Degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in Fine Arts from Harvard, which had mostly involved reviewing art history
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
, in 1981.
His first job after earning his degree was at a public policy think tank
Think tank
A think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...
in the Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
area that worked with the Office of the Secretary of Defense
Office of the Secretary of Defense
The Office of the Secretary of Defense is a headquarters-level staff of the Department of Defense of the United States of America. It is the principal civilian staff element of the Secretary of Defense, and it assists the Secretary in carrying out authority, direction and control of the Department...
. He went on to operate 400,000-line Fortran
Fortran
Fortran is a general-purpose, procedural, imperative programming language that is especially suited to numeric computation and scientific computing...
models of combat scenarios outcomes between the Warsaw Pact
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance , or more commonly referred to as the Warsaw Pact, was a mutual defense treaty subscribed to by eight communist states in Eastern Europe...
and NATO from 1981 to 1983. Biddle's suspicions about the model's accuracy and about Defense Department
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
statistical planning in general would later inspire the material in his first book, Military Power: Explaining Victory and Defeat in Modern Battle.
Biddle earned a Master's Degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in 1985 and then a Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
in 1992-- both of those from Harvard and both focusing on American public policy. He later joked, "I got to know every bad restaurant in Harvard Square very well by the time I was done!" Biddle felt particularly inspired by mentor
Mentor
In Greek mythology, Mentor was the son of Alcimus or Anchialus. In his old age Mentor was a friend of Odysseus who placed Mentor and Odysseus' foster-brother Eumaeus in charge of his son Telemachus, and of Odysseus' palace, when Odysseus left for the Trojan War.When Athena visited Telemachus she...
professors Albert Carnesale
Albert Carnesale
Albert Carnesale is an American academic. He is a former chancellor of the University of California, Los Angeles, provost of Harvard University, and dean of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard. In November 1994, while serving as Dean and Provost, Carnesale also served as Acting President...
and Michael Nacht, political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
experts who have since moved to U.C. Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
.
Later career
Biddle currently serves as a Senior Fellow for Defense Policy at the Council on Foreign RelationsCouncil on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
(CFR), which he joined in January 2006. He formerly worked as an associate professor and Elihu Root chair of military studies at the U.S. Army War College
U.S. Army War College
The United States Army War College is a United States Army school located in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on the 500 acre campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks...
's Strategic Studies Institute
Strategic Studies Institute
The Strategic Studies Institute is the U.S. Army's institute for strategic and national security research and analysis. It is part of the U.S. Army War College. SSI conducts strategic research and analysis to support the U.S. Army War College curricula, provides direct analysis for Army and...
. His popular interest writings have appeared in multiple publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, The International Herald Tribune, and The Guardian.
Biddle's career has also included research and teaching posts at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
, the Institute for Defense Analyses
Institute for Defense Analyses
The Institute for Defense Analyses is a non-profit corporation that administers three federally funded research and development centers to assist the United States government in addressing important national security issues, particularly those requiring scientific and technical expertise...
(IDA), Harvard’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
The Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs is a permanent research center located within the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. The center's current director is political scientist Graham T. Allison....
(BCSIA), and Harvard's Kennedy School of Government's Office of National Security Programs.
He published Military Power: Explaining Victory and Defeat in Modern Battle through Princeton University Press
Princeton University Press
-Further reading:* "". Artforum International, 2005.-External links:* * * * *...
in 2004. The book has won multiple writing awards including CFR's Arthur Ross Award Silver Medal
Arthur Ross Book Award
The Arthur Ross Book Award was endowed in 2001 by Arthur Ross for the purpose of recognizing books that make an outstanding contribution to the understanding of foreign policy or international relations. The prize is for nonfiction works from the past two years, in English or translation, and is...
for 2005 and the 2005 Huntington Prize from the Olin Institute for Strategic Studies.
Biddle received the U.S. Army Superior Civilian Service Medal in 2003 and again in 2006. He received the U.S. Army Commander’s Award for Public Service in 2007 as well. Within the U.S. military, he served on General Stanley McChrystal’s Initial Strategic Assessment Team in Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
in 2009, on General David Petraeus
David Petraeus
David Howell Petraeus is the current Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, sworn in on September 6, 2011. Prior to his assuming the directorship of the CIA, Petraeus was a four-star general serving over 37 years in the United States Army. His last assignments in the Army were as commander...
’ Joint Strategic Assessment Team in Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
in 2007, and as a Senior Advisor to General Petraeus
David Petraeus
David Howell Petraeus is the current Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, sworn in on September 6, 2011. Prior to his assuming the directorship of the CIA, Petraeus was a four-star general serving over 37 years in the United States Army. His last assignments in the Army were as commander...
’ Central Command Assessment Team in Washington in 2008-2009.
Beliefs
Biddle stated in 2006 that the George W. Bush administration did not do "an adequate job" of establishing a grand strategy for the war on terrorWar on Terror
The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...
with specific aims and specifically defined enemies. He criticized the administration's approach as "quite vague". He called the Bush doctrine of 'rollback', in which the U.S. tries to end the root cause of terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
by replacing failing autocracies
Autocracy
An autocracy is a form of government in which one person is the supreme power within the state. It is derived from the Greek : and , and may be translated as "one who rules by himself". It is distinct from oligarchy and democracy...
in the Arab world
Arab world
The Arab world refers to Arabic-speaking states, territories and populations in North Africa, Western Asia and elsewhere.The standard definition of the Arab world comprises the 22 states and territories of the Arab League stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the...
with democracies
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
, "a very demanding program" but a legitimate, reasonable view.
He also remarked in 2006 that the War in Afghanistan
War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front launched Operation Enduring Freedom...
had progressively grown more difficult for American forces since, at first, they fought untrained, amateur Taliban-related militants. Yet later on, according to Biddle, American forces began fighting well-trained foreign agents such as al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda is a global broad-based militant Islamist terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad...
operatives that incorporate Western-style infantry tactics. Biddle referred to the Afghan war in mid-2009 as "perhaps the most controversial and divisive issue in U.S. defense policy".
In addition, he stated that counterinsurgency operations historically tend to fail, with only about a 25% success rate. However, he argued that the U.S. has a compellingly strong national interest in security and stability for the region. Biddle wrote that the best policy is "to defend an expensive, risky, potentially unpopular war with an argument that is sound but ultimately indirect and a close call on the merits." He praised the Obama administration
Presidency of Barack Obama
The Presidency of Barack Obama began at noon EST on January 20, 2009 when he became the 44th President of the United States. Obama was a United States Senator from Illinois at the time of his victory over Arizona Senator John McCain in the 2008 presidential election...
's actions, labeling the President "a perhaps uniquely skilled political communicator", but Biddle cautioned that Obama faces "a very hard sell indeed."
Biddle has argued generally about the U.S. military and its history,
He has stated about U.S. power and prestige,
See also
- Contributors to The American Interest
- Members of the Council on Foreign RelationsMembers of the Council on Foreign RelationsThere are two types of Council on Foreign Relations membership: life, and term membership, which lasts for five years and is available to those between the ages of 30 and 36 at the time of their application. Only U.S. citizens and permanent residents who have applied for U.S. citizenship are...
- List of pundits in the United States
- Max BootMax BootMax Boot is an American author, consultant, editorialist, lecturer, and military historian. He has been a prominent advocate for American power. He once described his ideas as "American might to promote American ideals." He self-identifies as a conservative, once joking that "I grew up in the...