Episode S1 | E4

Was the Iraq War a Mistake?

Air Date: Jul 31, 2016

About this episode

One of the principle architects of the 2003 United States invasion of Iraq, a senior Obama administration Middle East policymaker and an exiled cousin of Syrian President Assad, discuss and debate U.S. policy options in the world’s most chaotic region, past, present and future.

Learn more

"Islamism: Syria’s Growing Cancer"  by Ribal al-Assad, The Huffington Post
"Six Strategies Obama Could Use to Fight the Islamic State"  by Douglas Feith
WATCH | Douglas Feith on The Daily Show with John Stewart
"The Promise of Arab Liberalism"  by Tamara Cofman Wittes, Policy Review, The Hoover Institute

About the guests

Ribal al-Assad

Founder and Director, Organisation for Democracy and Freedom in Syria

Ribal Al-Assad is the Founder and Director of the Organization for Democracy and Freedom in Syria. He is an international campaigner for democracy, freedom and human rights. Ribal, 37, was born in Syria and has lived in the West since being exiled from his country as a child. He brings new ideas and perspectives to campaigning for democracy and...

Tamara Cofman Wittes

Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs (Obama Administration)

Tamara Cofman Wittes is a senior fellow in the Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings. Wittes served as deputy assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs from November of 2009 to January 2012, coordinating U.S. policy on democracy and human rights in the Middle East during the Arab uprisings. Wittes also oversaw the Middle East...

Douglas Feith

Former Undersecretary of Defense For Policy (Bush Administration)

Douglas J. Feith served as Under Secretary of Defense for Policy from July 2001 until August 2005. In that position, he helped devise the U.S. government’s strategy for the war on terrorism and contributed to policy for the Afghanistan and Iraq campaigns. Mr. Feith’s duties included managing the Defense Department’s international relations and...