In recent years we've seen an explosion of revelations and concerns about how foreign dictatorships use illicit wealth, lobbyists, strategic

investments, and much more to interfere in democracies. In this talk, we will examine how and why these regimes have been so successful in recent years - and what it means for democracies around the world, from Germany to America and beyond.

Casey Michel is an author, journalist, and Director of the Combating Kleptocracy Program with the Human Rights Foundation. He is the author of American Kleptocracy, named by The Economist as one of the "best books to read to understand financial crime." His writing on kleptocracy, illicit finance, dark money, foreign interference has appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, The Atlantic, and more. He is currently sanctioned by the Russian government for his work.

His second book, Foreign Agents, is about the rise and devastating impact of the U.S.’s foreign lobbying industry and was described by The Economist as “an eye-opening depiction of an industry that has largely defied efforts to keep it in check” as well as one of the
“biggest foreign-policy book releases of 2024" by Foreign Policy Magazine.

 

Currently, Michel is working on his third book United States of Oligarchy: How America's Wealthiest Ally with Dictators, Weaken the U.S., and Destroy Democracy, which will be published by St. Martin’s Press and will be released August 4, 2026.​

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There will be an in-person book group to discuss FOREIGN AGENTS at Amerikahaus on February 11th. More information HERE

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Photo (c) Versha Sharma