Michael A. Ledeen, a prominent American historian and thinker, passed away at the age of 83 after experiencing a series of minor strokes at his daughter’s residence in Texas. He was known for his active involvement in helping bring about the downfall of the communist Soviet Union and its Eastern European allies behind the Iron Curtain.
Ledeen’s impactful roles included serving as a terrorism special advisor to Alexander Haig, the Secretary of State under President Ronald Reagan, and later offering consultancy services to the National Security Council. According to author and journalist David P. Goldman, in an article for the Asia Times, Ledeen’s behind-the-scenes contribution to America’s success in the Cold War exceeded what was publicly known.
Goldman highlighted an instance in 1983 when Ledeen, known for his expertise in Italian history and fascism, was sent by the Reagan administration to persuade Italian Prime Minister Bettino Craxi to permit the deployment of Pershing missiles by the U.S. as a response to increasing Soviet aggression. Goldman emphasized the significant trust Ledeen commanded within the Reagan administration and the strategic importance of his actions.
Iranians protest the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in Tehran on Oct. 1, 2022. (AP Photo/Middle East Images)
Leeden did not advocate military intervention in Iran. He was in the business of replicating Reagan’s anti-Soviet playbook for Iran’s clerical regime.
He told Fox News Brit Hume in 2005 that “the Western world, and in particular the United States” needs to support political prisoners in Iran and demonstrations against the regime.
He told Hume, “We should be giving money to the various … Farsi-language broadcasters, some here, some in England, some in Sweden and so forth, some in Germany, to go on the air and share with the Iranian people the now-demonstrated techniques for a successful, nonviolent revolution.”
British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher greets U.S. Secretary of State Alexander Haig in London on April 10, 1981. (AP1981)
He coined the phrase “Faster, please!” for his widely read blog at PJ Media to denote the great urgency to dismantle America’s enemies and stop Islamist-animated terrorism.
Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, paid tribute to Ledeen in a post on X. He wrote in part, “Michael’s understanding of the American people and the Jewish people formed the basis of his abiding faith in the future of America and Israel and in our enduring alliance and friendship.”
Ledeen was born in Los Angeles in 1941 and authored numerous books on national security, including “Perilous Statecraft: An Insider’s Account of the Iran-Contra Affair.” He earned a Ph.D. in history and philosophy from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. His academic advisor at Wisconsin was the prominent historian George Mosse, who fled Nazi Germany because of antisemitism.
Ledeen cultivated a new generation of academics, journalists, think tank scholars and authors at his Chevy Chase home. His residence became a kind of informal salon for intellectuals and foreign policy types who had freshly arrived in Washington, D.C.
He was also a top-level bridge player and won a national championship, the Truscott/U.S.P.C. Senior Teams. He is survived by his wife, a daughter, Simone, who served as a deputy assistant secretary of defense during the first Trump administration, and his two sons, former Marine Corps officers Gabriel and Daniel.
