About this episode
James D. Boys discusses the Madman Theory and its implications for Donald Trump's leadership style and geopolitical strategies.
Is Donald Trump mad? Or is he a practitioner of the Madman Theory — and therefore not mad at all? James D. Boys, author of U.S. Grand Strategy and the Madman Theory: From Nixon to Trump, argues that the Madman Theory is not madness, but the performance of madness: a tactic by which a sane leader feigns irrationality to make an adversary believe there is even a one percent chance of overwhelming, disproportionate force. In this new Conflicted Conversation, Boys explains: What the Madman Theory means Donald Trump, unpredictability and Trump Derangement Syndrome Nuclear strategy, Eisenhower, and Cold War brinkmanship Barry Goldwater, the Cuban Missile Crisis and the politics of nuclear fear Richard Nixon, Henry Kissinger and the Madman Theory in Vietnam Trump’s use of Madman tactics against North Korea, Iran, NATO and trade partners Whether Trump’s second-term grand strategy is chaos, coercion or calculated geopolitical pressure Follow James on X: https://x.com/jamesdboys Join the Conflicted Community here: https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm Find us on X: https://twitter.com/MHconflicted And Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MHconflicted And Instagram…
People in this episode
Guest: James D. Boys
Topics covered
- Madman Theory
- U.S. Grand Strategy
- Nuclear Strategy
- Cold War
- Trump's Tactics
- Geopolitical Pressure
Keywords
- Madman Theory
- Donald Trump
- Nuclear Strategy
- Cold War
- Eisenhower
- Vietnam
- Geopolitical Pressure
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Message Heard
Books & works: U.S. Grand Strategy and the Madman Theory: From Nixon to Trump
Places: North Korea, Iran, NATO
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