Trainwreck: The End of the Conservative Revolution (and Not a Moment Too Soon)

by Bill Press

Overview

One of America’s best-known progressive commentators reveals that, far from betraying conservative ideals, George W. Bush’s administration has behaved exactly as anyone would expect of a group that believes government is evil and always doomed to failure. Bill Press demonstrates that conservative positions have remained consistently wrong, and that, from its inception, the movement was dedicated to tearing things down, not building them up. Trainwreck will convince you that the conservative movement has remained on track for decades—and that, from the beginning, those tracks were headed for disaster.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781620458815
Publisher:	Trade Paper Press
Publication date:	04/01/2008
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	248
File size:	523 KB

About the Author

Bill Press is the host of XM and Sirius Radio's Bill Press Show, which is also syndicated in many cities across the country, and writes a syndicated column for Tribune Media Services. Formerly the host of CNN's Crossfire, Press has written several books, including Spin This!, Bush Must Go, and How the Republicans Stole Christmas.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments     vii
Introduction     1
Loving the Great Outdoors     15
Restoring Honor and Dignity to Government     47
Making Americans Safer     81
A Safeguard against Tyranny     99
Avoiding Pointless Foreign Adventures     135
Cutting Waste, Fraud, and Abuse     159
The Party of Fiscal Responsibility     177
Less Power to Washington     205
Conclusion: The Failure of Conservatism     227
Bibliography     237
Index     239

Editorial Reviews

In a domestic cooptation of the neocon "End of History" thesis, talk radio host Press (Spin This!) argues that conservatism's record of failure should condemn it to a subordinate place in American politics-it can survive to check "the excess of the majority," argues Press, but must never again be allowed to govern. For Press (who unfurls a dishonor roll of scandals, policy failures, corporate toadying, double standards and outright criminality), this betrayal of public trust has meant the betrayal of conservatism's own purported principles. Thus, citing the conservative "canon" of the mid-century right-wing intellectual Russell Kirk, and even Barry Goldwater, Press lambastes Bush, Cheney and other Republicans for turning away from the ideals of small government and limited executive power. Likewise, on the environment, conservatism was formerly synonymous with conservation, notes Press, pointing to early Republican leadership on this score from Teddy Roosevelt to California state senator and "environmental pioneer" Peter Behr. These contradictions rarely come as revelations-indeed the bulk of this narrative will be familiar to anyone paying even passing attention to the news-but by presenting all this material together, Press creates a serviceable election-year handbook for voters, particularly the Democratic opposition. (Apr.)

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Publishers Weekly

* In a domestic cooptation of the neocon “End of History” thesis, talk radio host Press (Spin This!) argues that conservatism's record of failure should condemn it to a subordinate place in American politics—it can survive to check “the excess of the majority,” argues Press, but must never again be allowed to govern. For Press (who unfurls a dishonor roll of scandals, policy failures, corporate toadying, double standards and outright criminality), this betrayal of public trust has meant the betrayal of conservatism's own purported principles. Thus, citing the conservative “canon” of the mid-century right-wing intellectual Russell Kirk, and even Barry Goldwater, Press lambastes Bush, Cheney and other Republicans for turning away from the ideals of small government and limited executive power. Likewise, on the environment, conservatism was formerly synonymous with conservation, notes Press, pointing to early Republican leadership on this score from Teddy Roosevelt to California state senator and “environmental pioneer” Peter Behr. These contradictions rarely come as revelations—indeed the bulk of this narrative will be familiar to anyone paying even passing attention to the news—but by presenting all this material together, Press creates a serviceable election-year handbook for voters, particularly the Democratic opposition. (Apr.) (Publishers Weekly, January 28, 2008)

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