He has written a series of non-fiction books, including three about America's relationship with China and four more about American foreign policy.

His group biography about George W. Bush's war cabinet, Rise of The Vulcans, was a New York Times best-seller.

As a newspaper journalist, he worked for more than two decades for the Los Angeles Times, where he served as Supreme Court correspondent, Beijing bureau chief, and foreign-policy columnist.

Earlier in his career, he worked at The Washington Post, where he took part in the newspaper's Watergate coverage.

During his 33-year newspaper career, he worked for the New Haven Journal-Courier, The Washington Post, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Baltimore Sun, and the Los Angeles Times.