National Security

Lessons From The Hoover Policy Boot Camp

Contributing Scholar: H. R. McMaster

The Greatest Threats to American Security

China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea have increasingly worked together to challenge American power. Meeting that threat requires more than military strength; it requires strategic competence, credible deterrence, strong alliances, and a clear understanding of war’s enduring nature — the foundations of lasting American security.

Up Next Minimum Wage: Good Intentions, Hard Evidence

Strategic Competence in a Dangerous World

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Published June 19, 2026

McMaster examines how the optimism of the post–Cold War era gave way to the shocks and disappointments that followed in the 2000s. False confidence in the inevitability of liberal order, the end of great-power rivalry, and the supremacy of American military technology, he argues, fostered strategic complacency and left the United States poorly prepared for a more dangerous world. What follows is a case for strategic competence grounded in clear objectives, disciplined judgment, and a clear understanding of war as political, human, uncertain, and ultimately a contest of wills.

Recorded on August 14, 2025.

Check out more from H.R. McMaster:

Watch "Today's Battlegrounds" with H.R. McMaster here.
Watch "GoodFellows" with H.R. McMaster here.
Read "The Free World’s Competitive Edge" by H.R. McMaster here.

Learn more about H.R. McMaster here.

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The opinions expressed in this video are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Hoover Institution or Stanford University.