Democracy in Exile: Hans Speier and the Rise of the Defense Intellectual (The United States in the World)

Anyone interested in the history of U.S. foreign relations, Cold War history, and twentieth century intellectual history will find this impressive biography of Hans Speier, one of the most influential figures in American defense circles of the twentieth century, a must-read.In__Democracy in Exile__, Daniel Bessner shows how the experience of the Weimar Republic's collapse and the rise of Nazism informed Hans Speier's work as an American policymaker and institution builder. Bessner delves into Speier's intellectual development, illuminating the ideological origins of the expert-centered approach to foreign policymaking and revealing the European roots of Cold War liberalism.__Democracy in Exile__places Speier at the center of the influential and fascinating transatlantic network of policymakers, many of them German 'migr's, who struggled with the tension between elite expertise and democratic politics. Speier was one of the most prominent intellectuals among this cohort, and Bessner traces his career, in which he advanced from university intellectual to state expert, holding a key position at the RAND Corporation and serving as a powerful consultant to the State Department and Ford Foundation, across the mid-twentieth century. Bessner depicts the critical role Speier played in the shift in American intellectual history in which hundreds of social scientists left their universities and contributed to the creation of an expert-based approach to U.S. foreign relations, in the process establishing close connections between governmental and nongovernmental organizations. As Bessner writes: to understand the rise of the defense intellectual, we must understand Hans Speier. Anyone interested in the history of U.S. foreign relations, Cold War history, and twentieth century intellectual history will find this impressive biography of Hans Speier, one of the most influential figures in American defense circles of the twentieth century, a must-read. In Democracy in Exile, Daniel Bessner shows how the experience of the Weimar Republic's collapse and the rise of Nazism informed Hans Speier's work as an American policymaker and institution builder. Bessner delves into Speier's intellectual development, illuminating the ideological origins of the expert-centered approach to foreign policymaking and revealing the European roots of Cold War liberalism. Democracy in Exile places Speier at the center of the influential and fascinating transatlantic network of policymakers, many of them German émigrés, who struggled with the tension between elite expertise and democratic politics. Speier was one of the most prominent intellectuals among this cohort, and Bessner traces his career, in which he advanced from university intellectual to state expert, holding a key position at the RAND Corporation and serving as a powerful consultant to the State Department and Ford Foundation, across the mid-twentieth century. Bessner depicts the critical role of Speier played in the shift in American intellectual history in which hundreds of social scientists left their universities and contributed to the creation of an expert-based approach to U.S. foreign relations, in the process establishing close connections between governmental and nongovernmental organizations. As Bessner writes: to understand the rise of the defense intellectual, we must understand Hans Speier DEMOCRACY IN EXILE 1 Contents 8 Preface 10 Acknowledgments 12 Introduction: Democracy, Expertise, and U.S. Foreign Policy 20 1. Masses and Marxism in Weimar Germany 34 2. The Social Role of the Intellectual Exile 63 3. Public Opinion, Propaganda, and Democracy in Crisis 92 4. Psychological Warfare in Theory and Practice 121 5. The Making of a Defense Intellectual 145 6. The Adviser 175 7. The Institution Builder 196 8. Social Science and Its Discontents 223 Conclusion: Speier, Expertise, and Democracy after 1960 244 Abbreviations 252 Archival and Source Abbreviations 254 Notes 256 Archives Cited 302 Index 306 Introduction : Democracy, Expertise, And U.s. Foreign Policy -- Masses And Marxism In Weimar Germany -- The Social Role Of The Intellectual Exile -- Public Opinion, Propaganda, And Democracy In Crisis -- Psychological Warfare In Theory And Practice -- The Making Of A Defense Intellectual -- The Advisor -- The Institution Builder -- Social Science And Its Discontents -- Conclusion : Speier, Expertise, And Democracy After 1960. Daniel Bessner. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.