Also discussed here in great detail: http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2016/12/bruce_bueno_de_1.html http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2016/12/bruce_bueno_de_1.h

Also discussed here in great detail: http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2016/12/bruce_bueno_de_1.html http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2016/12/bruce_bueno_de_1.ht... > Political scientist Bruce Bueno de Mesquita of NYU and co-author of The Spoils of War talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how presidents go to war. Bueno de Mesquita argues that the decision of how and when to go to war is made in self-interested ways rather than in consideration of what is best for the nation. The discussion includes a revisionist perspective on the presidencies of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and others as Bueno de Mesquita tries to make the case that the reputations of these men are over-inflated.