Marian Miner Cook
Athenaeum

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Autocrats vs. Democrats: China, Russia, America, and the New Global Disorder

Wed, April 15, 2026
Dinner Program
Michael McFaul

Ambassador Michael McFaul’s new book, Autocrats vs. Democrats: China, Russia, America, and the New Global Disorder, challenges the conventional wisdom that the United States has entered a “Cold War 2.0” with China and its autocratic partner, Russia. Instead, it argues that the path forward is not to force today’s conflict into a decades-old paradigm, but to draw lessons from the Cold War so that democracy can again emerge victorious. Drawing on his experience as a social scientist, historian, and former policymaker, and U.S. Ambassador to Russia, McFaul presents a fresh analysis of the unique military, economic, and ideological challenges posed by contemporary great-power competition and goes on to offer a grand strategy for American success.

Michael McFaul is the Ken Olivier and Angela Nomellini Professor of International Studies in Political Science, a Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, and the Peter and Helen Bing Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, all at Stanford University. He is also an international affairs analyst for NBC News. Previously, McFaul served for five years in the Obama administration, first as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Russian and Eurasian Affairs at the National Security Council at the White House (2009-2012), and then as U.S. Ambassador to the Russian Federation (2012-2014). 

McFaul has written several books, including the New York Times bestseller From Cold War To Hot Peace: An American Ambassador in Putin's Russia, and, most recently, Autocrats vs. Democrats: China, Russia, America, and the New Global Disorder. 

Ambassador McFaul will deliver the Keck Center for Strategic and International Studies 2025-26 Adams Family Lecture. 

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Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum

Claremont McKenna College
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Claremont, CA 91711