Bruce Bueno de Mesquita on the Spoils of War

There is a positive correlation between the reputation of an American president and the number of people dying in wars while that president is in office. Bruce Bueno de Mesquita talks with host Russ Roberts about how presidents go to war. He argues that the decision is made in self-interested ways rather than in consideration of what is best for the nation. The discussion includes a revisionist perspective of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and others as Bueno de Mesquita tries to make the case that the reputations of these men are over-inflated.