A foreign policy they can't refuse.

• Author: Stooksbury, Clark
• Position: Briefly Noted - Analogy between "The Godfather" and American foreign policies - Brief article

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Francis Ford Coppola's 1972 film The Godfather has become a cultural landmark, referenced in everything from The Simpsons to The Sopranos. With The Godfather Doctrine (Princeton), John C. Hulsman and A. Wess Mitchell have applied the differing views of mob boss Don Corleone's three sons (excluding the hapless Fredo) to differing schools of American foreign policy. The hotheaded Sonny is a neocon, while adopted son and family consigliere Tom Hagen represents what the authors call "liberal institutionalism." Michael Corleone represents the authors' preferred model of realism, since he senses that...