Our Power Line book event tonight was great fun. We'll have much more to say over the next couple of days, but for now a few quick impressions. It was extraordinary to have Henry Kissinger, Norman Podhoretz and Mark Steyn as speakers and panelists. I can't think when a more impressive or diverse group has been assembled. The speeches were of exceptional quality; we will try to obtain transcripts and post them.

The Four Seasons was a delightful site for the event. The food was excellent, and everyone seemed to have a good time.

Lt. Tom Cotton sat at my table. We can now say that the question of his existence has been conclusively resolved.

In addition to more formal efforts by others, my daughters took some photos and videos. I'll put some excerpts up when I've had time to look at them. In the meantime, Jim Hoft of Gateway Pundit live-blogged the event. He has photos and commentary; here is a shot of Scott with my wife Loree and Paul Wolfowitz.

Keep an eye on Jim's site, as I'm sure he will have more over the next day or two.

Here is how I kicked off the event and explained why World War IV was our choice for Book of the Year:

Good evening and welcome to the Power Line Book of the Year award ceremony. Before we do anything else, I want to thank our hosts, Lawrence and Susan Kadish and Nina Rosenwald, for sponsoring this beautiful event.

Scott Johnson, Paul Mirengoff and I started Power Line nearly six years ago, in the shadow of September 11.

Scott and I had been writing together since 1990, and the three of us were interested in a broad range of issues. But from the beginning, our paramount purpose was to support our country, our President and our armed forces, to whatever small extent we could, in what we always believed would be a long war against Islamic extremism.

It was from that perspective that we selected Norman Podhoretz’s World War IV as the Book of the Year for 2007.

Much has happened since 2001. This war, like any other, has seen both triumphs and setbacks. But if our ultimate success in the war against Islamic extremism is in doubt, it is not because of the power or fanaticism of our enemy. It is because so many here at home, and even more around the world, find it more comfortable to believe that we are not really at war—that terrorists are only criminals, that September 11 was a fluke, that military action by the United States can only be counterproductive.

It is to the home front, and this paradoxical combination of complacency and defeatism, that World War IV is squarely addressed.

In concise, lucid prose, Podhoretz reminds us:

--that the jihadists’ war against us did not begin on September 11;

--that the Bush Doctrine of pre-emption is the only effective response to a mortal enemy that cannot be deterred by threats of retaliation;

--that the so-called “realist” proposal to placate the jihadists by, in essence, selling out Israel, is as unrealistic as it is immoral;

--that the only serious plan to deal with the problem of Islamic extremism in the long term is the Bush administration’s effort to drain the swamp by bringing freedom and modernity to the Arab world;

--and that this plan is squarely in the best tradition of American foreign policy, from Abraham Lincoln to Franklin Roosevelt to Ronald Reagan.

World War IV marshals facts in support of these propositions to construct an argument that is not just compelling, but irrefutable. It sweeps away the trivia that so often clogs our daily headlines, and reminds us of the basic principles that must guide the next phase of our war against the Islamic extremists—which, whether we seek it or not, may soon be upon us.

In recognition of all of these virtues and more, we are proud to present the Power Line Book of the Year award for 2007 to Norman Podhoretz, for World War IV.

More to come.

UPDATE: Photographic proof of Lt. Cotton's existence; here is he with one of the other guests. Ontological doubts about Lt. Cotton didn't arise from any elusiveness on his part, but rather from the a priori conviction on the part of many liberals that it is inconceivable that a Harvard-educated lawyer could prefer leading soldiers in combat to commercial litigation:

Posted by John at 12:11 AM  |    |