Nixon worked as an analyst for the CIA and was in Iraq when Saddam Hussein was captured. He was one of the people who interrogated him following his capture. One thing to note is that parts of this book have been redacted following a CIA review of the manuscript. In some instances it is a small redaction like the monetary value Hussein feels like the American soldiers who captured him stole and in other instances it is several lines. The redactions are fairly sparse and don’t detract from the story too much.

After working for the CIA, Nixon writes this book with a critical eye towards US foreign policy. He writes “our lack of understanding reflected a serious flaw in U.S. foreign policy that has plagued us since our founding. The United States usually reacts blindly to threats, whether communism or an Arab strongman, without pragmatically assessing the advantages of engagement and realpolitik.”

He also notes after the capture of Hussein “it occurred to me that our government had never prepared for capturing Saddam alive. U.S. officials took it as a foregone conclusion that Saddam would kill himself rather than be captured, or be killed as he tried to escape. When he was captured alive, no one knew what to do.”

The book contains some interesting exchanges between Nixon and Hussein including the men Saddam Hussein most admired. His answers were de Gaulle, Lenin, Mao, and George Washington.

As much as this book is about the interrogation of Saddam Hussein it is also a strong critic of American foreign policy. Nixon notes “ I thought President Clinton’s attention to foreign policy was similar to that of a child with attention deficit disorder.”

Nixon compared President Bush to Hussein writing “One of the great ironies of the Iraq War was that brutal dictator Saddam Hussein and freedom fighter George W. Bush were alike in many ways. Both had haughty, imperious demeanors. Both were fairly ignorant of the outside world and had rarely traveled abroad. Both tended to see things as black and white, good and bad, or for and against, and became uncomfortable when presented with multiple alternatives. Both surrounded themselves with compliant advisers and had little tolerance for dissent.”

Speaking of President Obama Nixon notes “Obama apparently did not see Iraq as his problem and apparently had no intention of investing the time, effort, and political capital needed to continue with a policy that he inherited from the Bush administration.”

I found the description of the meeting that Nixon had with President Bush informative. It provides a glimpse into the workings of the Bush executive branch. Nixon provides his opinion of many of the key players during the Iraq war.

Overall this was a quick interesting read. I rate it 4 out of 5 stars.