Military historian and journalist Thomas E. Ricks won the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting for his Wall Street Journal series on U.S. defense spending in the post-Cold War era. His books include The Generals, The Gamble, and the Pulitzer Prize finalist Fiasco, a bestselling account of America's tragic and reckless invasion of Iraq. A member of the Center for a New American Security defense policy think tank, he has reported on a wide variety of military activities for The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Atlantic Monthly, among other publications. His new book is a dual biography of Winston Churchill's and George Orwell's farsighted fight for democracy during its darkest hours.

(recorded 5/25/2017)