Inside Out India and China: Local Politics Go Global

Acknowledgments

189 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS THERE ARE MANY great research institutions in the world, but none more supportive, collegial, and interdisciplinary than Brookings. Three years of planning and execution went into this short book, along with considerable help from many Brookings colleagues. The John L. Thornton Center on China houses a scholarly dream team. Many thanks to Jonathan Pollack, Jeff Bader, David Dollar, Erica Downs, Kevin Foley, Cheng Li, and Ken Lieberthal. At the Brookings-Tsinghua Center in Beijing, Wang Feng and Zhou Xuelian steered me through China’s dynamic and complex intellectual scene, and Tao Ran, Arthur Kroeber, and Scott Moore all taught me a great deal. Likewise, Brookings’s deep bench of all-stars on India have taught me about the world’s largest democracy, especially Barry Bosworth, Stephen Cohen, Tanvi Madan, Eswar Prasad, and Bruce Riedel. Vikram Mehta supported this book even before becoming chairman of Brookings India in New Delhi, and Subir Gokarn already has proven a great resource. Governance Studies is Brookings’s original research program, and its current roster lives up to that ninety-seven-year legacy. A number of scholars read and helped to improve this manuscript. Thanks especially to Darrell West, Bill Galston, Elaine Kamarck, ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 190 Tom Mann, Pietro Nivola, Jonathan Rauch, Walter Valdivia, Phil Wallach, and Ben Wittes. Bruce Katz, Amy Liu, and Joseph Parilla in Metropolitan Policy inspired the book’s focus on cities and states. Tracy Gordon in Economic Studies taught me about fiscal federalism, and she was a diligent and fast reader. Kemal Dervis, Govinda Avasarala, Charles Ebinger, Nathan Hultman, Jon Huntsman , Michael O’Hanlon, and Anwar Shah all provided detailed and helpful comments. My research assistants deserve more than simple thanks. Han Chen has been an insightful, resourceful, and tireless companion in research and writing, and a reality check on modern China. For ten weeks, Summer Jiakun Zhao served as our family’s tour guide, travel agent, interpreter, research assistant, and adopted daughter. John-Michael Arnold, Kadeem Cooper, Alex Fife, Dana Gansman, and Amanda Mays all provided logistical support, as well as intellectual and research help along the way. Alexis Bataillon and Steve Bennett are dear and trusted colleagues, handling my day job as I traveled and wrote. Both are keen students of politics and policy, providing sharp comments and corrections. The Brookings Press remains best in class. Bob Faherty has admirably led the press for twenty-nine years, and I’m honored that he supported this book from the outset. Moreover, he’s been a friend for nearly a decade. Larry Converse, Chris Kelaher, Janet Walker, and Susan Woollen poured considerable energy into this book on matters large and small. Starr Belsky provided an excellent edit. The Brookings communications team, led by David Nassar, included Stephanie Dahle, Shawn Dhar, and Christine Jacobs who all have been terrific guides in taking these ideas into cyberspace and beyond. Parts of this manuscript were delivered as lectures at Brookings, the Center for American Progress, Fordham University, the University of Virginia, the College of William and Mary, the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV), the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, and the Tsinghua School of Public Policy and Management. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 191 Special thanks go to Bill Brown, Rob Lang, Bernard Malamud, Alexandra Nikolich, Dennis Pirages, and Lindy Schumacher at Brookings Mountain West and the Lincy Institute, and to Tom Kaplan for hosting and participating in so many sessions where ideas were marinated and cooked. Thanks also to Adam Anthony, Nancy Busch, Jon Cannon, George Demacopoulos, Deborah Lawrence , Valerie Longwood, Aristotle Papanikolaou, and Michael Werz for giving me the opportunity to get feedback from their scholars and students. Fordham President Fr. McShane and UNLV President Neal Smatresk deserve extra credit for their friendship and encouragement. Some world-class scholars who also happen to be dear friends provided valuable insights: Jeffrey Legro, Mark Leonard, Jim Ryan, and David Sandalow. Kate Ryan listened to sections of this during marathon training and also provided memorable lines for Kristen and me to recite as we traveled. Special thanks to Walter Isaacson and Krista Tippett for being inspirational writers and insightful readers . Thanks to Jon Landau for his friendship and encouragement. Brookings is fortunate to have the Tsinghua School of Public Policy and Management (SPPM) as a partner—especially Xue Lan and Meng Bo, who are living proof of the vibrancy and openness of China’s academic scene. I greatly benefited from conversations with...