These essays deal with some major subjects in American diplomacy since the war, including Truman's foreign policy, George F. Kennan and America's 'containment' policy, the Point Four Program and the developing world, the Eisenhower Doctrine and the Middle East, the Vietnam war, the CIA and Congressional Oversight of Intelligence, among others. Paterson takes the view that the US became locked in early on to a view of foreign policy based on combating the Communist menace, and so foreign policy was distorted by this overwhelming consideration.