"Takes a look at American presidential elections from 1968 to 2008 -- a period of great change in American society in general -- and explains how changes in technology, finance laws, party rules, political institutions, and the electorate itself have affected the selection process and might again in the upcoming election"--Provided by publisher.

A fresh look at the Gilded Age, when an oligarchy of wealth triumphed over democracy. At the end of the Civil War, with the rebellion put down and slavery ended, America belonged to Lincoln's "plain people." But "government of the people" and economic democracy were betrayed by political parties that fanned memories of the war to distract Americans from government of the corporation. Jay Gould, the "Mephisto of Wall Street," never runs for office,...

In 1980, President-Elect Ronald Reagan ushered in conservatism as the most powerful political force in America. His efforts to reshape the government with tax cuts, deregulation, increased military spending, and a more conservative social policy faltered at first. But the economy roared back, and the Reagan revolution was on. Seib shows how this conservative movement came to dominate national politics, then began to evolve into the populist movement...

"Cuts through the hyperbole and hysteria that often distorts assessments of our republic, particularly at this time." - Alan Taylor, winner of the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for History What-and who-is a demagogue? How did America's Founders envision the presidency? What should a constitutional democracy look like-and how can it be fixed when it appears to be broken? Something is definitely wrong with Donald Trump's presidency, but what exactly? The extraordinary...

"Donald Trump will be president again, whether he is on the ballot or not. That is because Trumpism is overtaking the Republican Party and will mount a vigorous comeback, potentially in the hands of a savvier successor -- The Next Trump. This prophecy will come true, according to Miles Taylor, if we do not learn the lessons of the recent past. With the 2024 election approaching, the formerly "Anonymous" official is back with bombshell revelations...

"From the prophetic author of the now-classic What's the Matter with Kansas? and Listen, Liberal, an eye-opening account of populism, the most important and misunderstood movement of our time. Rarely does a work of history contain startling implications for the present, but in The People, No Thomas Frank pulls off that explosive effect by showing us that everything we think we know about populism is wrong. Today "populism" is seen as a frightening...

"From the congressman who led the first impeachment of Donald J. Trump, the vital inside account of American democracy in its darkest hour, and a warning that the forces of autocracy unleashed by Trump remain as potent as ever. In the years leading up to the election of Donald Trump, Congressman Adam Schiff had already been sounding the alarm over the resurgence of autocracy around the world, and the threat this posed to the United States. But as...

"An intimate study of Abraham Lincoln's powerful vision of democracy, which guided him through the Civil War and is still relevant today--by best-selling historian and three-time winner of the Lincoln Prize. Abraham Lincoln grappled with the greatest crisis of democracy that has ever confronted the United States. While many books have been written about his temperament, judgment, and steady hand in guiding the country through the Civil War, we know...