Notice:
This event occurs in the past.
Author Meets Readers | Overseen or Overlooked?
Thursday, November 6, 2025 from 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm
- In-person event
- Irene’s Pub Restaurant , Ottawa , ON , K1S 3W4
About the Book
“War is too important to be left to the generals,” declared French Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau over a century ago. But which civilians, exactly, play the most important roles in controlling the armed forces? When civilian control is studied, the focus is typically on those in the upper echelons of the executive branch: presidents, prime ministers, or defense secretaries. Yet, because civilians in the executive may be tempted to hide problems or use the military in controversial ways, researchers must extend Clemenceau’s dictum: if war is too important to be left to the generals, civilian control is too important to leave with the executive. This book aims to understand the similarities and differences among the world’s democracies regarding the role of legislatures in democratic civil-military relations. Drawing on over a dozen cases from across the globe, the authors examine how most legislatures face capability and motivational impediments to conducting truly robust oversight and propose realistic reforms to strengthen military accountability to elected officials and the public—the heart of the civil-military relationship.
About the Authors
Philippe Lagassé is Associate Professor and Barton Chair at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs, Carleton University.
Stephen M. Saideman is Professor and Paterson Chair of International Affairs at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs, Carleton University.
David P. Auerswald is Professor of Security Studies at the U.S. National War College.
About the Moderator
Justin Massie is a professor and Head of the Department of political science at the Université du Québec à Montréal. He is also Co-director of the Network for Strategic Analysis, and Co-director of Le Rubicon. He was the 2019 Fulbright Visiting Research Chair in Canada-U.S. Relations at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in Washington, DC. His research focuses on the global power transition, multinational military interventions, and foreign and defence policy.