Dr. Kori Schake
Kori Schake is a senior fellow and the director of foreign and defense policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI). Before joining AEI, Dr. Schake was the deputy director-general of the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. She has had a distinguished career in government, working at the US State Department, the US Department of Defense, and the National Security Council at the White House. She was also senior policy advisor on the 2008 McCain campaign. She has taught at Stanford, West Point, Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies, and the University of Maryland.
Dr. Schake is the author of five books: “The State and the Soldier: a History of Civil-Military Relations in the United States” (Polity Books, 2025); “America vs the West: Can the Liberal World Order Be Preserved?” (Penguin Random House Australia, Lowy Institute, 2018); “Safe Passage: The Transition from British to American Hegemony” (Harvard University Press, 2017); “State of Disrepair: Fixing the Culture and Practices of the State Department” (Hoover Institution Press, 2012); and “Managing American Hegemony: Essays on Power in a Time of Dominance” (Hoover Institution Press, 2009).
She is also the coeditor, along with former Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, of “Warriors & Citizens: American Views of Our Military” (Hoover Institution Press, 2016).
Dr. Schake has been widely published in policy journals and the popular press, including in CNN.com, Foreign Affairs, Politico, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post. She is a contributing writer at The Atlantic and War on the Rocks.
Dr. Schake has a PhD and MA in government and politics from the University of Maryland, as well as an MPM from the University of Maryland School of Public Policy. Her BA in international relations is from Stanford University.
Publications
Book by Kori Schake, “Managing American Hegemony: Essays on Power in a Time of Dominance”, on the sustainability of U.S. global power, the role of military force and strategies for reducing the costs and risks of maintaining international leadership. Date: July 1, 2009
Interview with Kori Schake on C-SPAN’s Book TV, discussing her book “State of Disrepair: Fixing the Culture and Practices of the State Department”, in which she critiques the institutional shortcomings of U.S. diplomacy and offers reforms to strengthen the State Department’s effectiveness and culture. Date: April 24, 2013.
Interview with Kori Schake on the Hoover Institution’s program, discussing her co-edited book “Warriors and Citizens” with General Jim Mattis and examining the growing divide between the U.S. military and civilian society. Date: November 10, 2016
Discussion with Dr. Kori Schake hosted by the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) on her book “Safe Passage: The Transition from British to American Hegemony” (2017) , analyzing how the U.S. replaced Britain as the global hegemon without war. Date: January 12, 2018.
Book by Kori Schake, “America vs the West: Can the Liberal World Order Be Preserved?” , analyzing how the United States’ retreat from global leadership under Donald Trump threatens the post-war liberal international order and asking whether Western middle powers can defend it without U.S. backing. Date: December 1, 2018
Book by Kori Schake, “The State and the Soldier: A History of Civil-Military Relations in the United States”, tracing how the U.S. military evolved from a feared standing army into a trusted guardian of democracy. Date: October 28, 2025
Interviews & podcasts
TED Talk by Kori Schake, “Is China Eating Us for Lunch?” Date: May 30, 2017
Lecture by Kori Schake, “Statesmanship Without Mythology”, arguing that effective U.S. statecraft requires abandoning nostalgia and confronting contemporary challenges through realistic, alliance-based coordination rather than idealized visions of past leadership. Date: 2023
Podcast interview with Kori Schake, discussing the future of U.S. foreign policy, the risks of a second Trump term and the case for a renewed conservative internationalism. Date: August 15, 2024
“What’s America Without Allies?” podcast episode with Kori Schake, analyzing the implications of U.S. retreat from global leadership and the strain on NATO and Five Eyes partnerships. Date: April 21, 2025
Council on Foreign Relations’ podcast interview “Civil-Military Relations Under Trump”, discussing how President Trump’s reshaping of military leadership tests the norms of civilian control and nonpartisanship in the U.S. armed forces. Date: October 14, 2025
Podcast interview with Kori Schake on The Remnant with Jonah Goldberg (The Dispatch), discussing the history and current state of U.S. civil-military relations, the role of Congress, and recent controversies involving Trump, Secretary Hegseth and the politicization of the military. Date: October 22, 2025.