Total Defense: The New Deal and the Invention of National Security

by Andrew Preston

The story of how FDR and fellow New Dealers created the idea of national security, transforming the meaning of defense and vastly expanding the US government's responsibilities.

National security may seem like a timeless notion. States have always sought to fortify themselves, and the modern state derives its legitimacy from protecting its population. Yet national security in fact has a very particular, very American, history--and...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0674737385
• ISBN13: 9780674737389
• Release Date: May 2025
• Publisher: Belknap Press
• Length: 320 Pages