The historic election of President Obama in 2008 prompted a vibrant and increased interest in American politics. In part, the racial and cosmopolitan identity of Barack Obama has created a chorus of diverse opinions with regard to the broader implications of the Obama phenomenon. Authors have examined, applauded and critiqued the President from varied perspectives that ascribe both messianic and nefarious attributes to a President associated with hope, change and (for some) ultimately disappointment. Fortunately, unlike a host of books on Obama, this book presents a scholarly and measured analysis of the Obama administration. In brief, Scott-Smith has assembled an international cast of authors whose understanding of the topic provides sufficient depth to encompass the complexity of contemporary American politics.

The book is divided into five parts that cover “Domestic Politics,” “US Foreign Policy and Security,” “Views from Central and Eastern Europe,” “Views from Western Europe” and “The Legal Dimension.”

The opening section on domestic politics includes two excellent and engaging chapters by Rob Kroes, “Barack Hussein Obama: His Powers of Language, His Language of Power,” and Dennis Hickey, “From Marginal to Mainstream: Barack Hussein Obama and the Enigma of American Identity.” Kroes alludes to the contemporary American dilemma with regard to demographic shifts and the emergence of a cosmopolitan majority and the rearguard action of conservative Americans who “call Obama fascist or communist, anything to make him and his policies sound anti-American, or un-American” (23). In an important departure from conventional wisdom Kroes explains that, given Obama's complex identity profile, he has had to shape his identity and his agenda in a manner that is acceptable to both European and African Americans. While the chapter might have delved more deeply into the disturbing undercurrent of racism that has surrounded the Obama presidency, it does highlight the structural and institutional constraints that some scholars allege have kept Obama from distancing his administration from the quagmire that was the Bush legacy (31). Hickey does a sterling job in defining the juxtaposition between Obama's racial designation, his global appeal and the fallacious but harmful rumour that Obama is a closet Muslim (43). Still, the more damning question is why it is apparently inconceivable that an American President could be a Muslim. The chapter's discourse also includes a fluid analysis regarding Obama's responses to Rev. Wright and Trayvon Martin, and his removal or assassination of Osama Bin Laden, which are framed within a broader context of racial and religious strife, demographic change, and Obama's willingness to bail out Wall Street in order to maintain the status quo (51).

Part Two focusses on US foreign policy and security. Jamie Shea, the deputy assistant secretary general, emerging security challenges, NATO HQ, provides an insightful view from Europe which addresses the disillusion with Bush and the intellectual credentials of Obama which encouraged Europeans to think that Europe and NATO would be restored to a central role in US foreign policy. Shea identifies Europe's tendency to think “changes in the White House … change US interests or the foreign policy constraints under which a US administration has to operate” (70). Shea is impressive as he combines a clinical but measured assessment of the realpolitik which underpins America's utilitarian relationship with NATO and the controversial assertion that “the Obama administration has pursued the ‘Global War on Terror’ with as much, if not more vigour than George W. Bush” (70). Shea's insights present a gloomy but realistic appraisal of the declining significance of Europe and the pivot towards Asia which could result in a global shift that will undoubtedly change the character of the transnational alliances between America, NATO and European states. The conclusion ties together the book's core sections in a coherent fashion whereby Scott-Smith indicates that, despite disappointments, Obama has restored some creditability to the presidency (315). However, the most salient point made by the editor is that “continuity generally triumphs over change … [and] the Obama presidency has been as much about the limitations of executive power domestically and internationally, as it has been about renewed exertion of US prowess” (316). It is fair to say that Obama has not made radical departures from the status quo; rather he has helped to stabilize or slow the decline of the US economy. With regard to foreign affairs the book points out the Obama administration's quest for a multilateral and more nuanced approach to international relations. Still, Obama has not reigned in the use of the military; rather he has increased the use of drones and not shied away from military actions. In the final analysis, this book presents both a credible and an evidence-based assessment of the Obama administration that is highly recommended. The only regrets are that perhaps the chapters were generally too short, and that a chapter pertaining to the limitations of presidential power might have argued that most Presidents tend to opt for maintaining the established order. The book could have benefited from a chapter that explored how Obama's identity profile has helped to extend America's soft power. Still, this book is a must for readers with an avid interest in Obama, US politics, international relations and the implied impact of developing nations such as China (although it does not cover China) on the transatlantic relations that have sustained (the formal or informal) transatlantic alliances since 1945.