The Rise of the Counter-Establishment: The Conservative Ascent to Political Power

by Sidney Blumenthal

A classic of American politics returns! How did the Republican Party build its infrastructure and arrive at the Reagan triumph in the years following Barry Goldwater’s defeat and Nixon’s cataclysmic resignation in 1974? The Rise of the Counter-Establishment , a now seminal study of contemporary politics, provides the answers. Based on hundreds of interviews with key policy makers, Sidney Blumenthal shows how the conservatives orchestrated their influence to change American politics. By charting the rise of a small group of ideologues who transformed their vision into Washington’s ruling orthodoxy, he brilliantly illuminates the important currents of conservative thought and action, as well as the mythology of Reaganism.
Although Blumenthal himself is unabashedly liberal, he is also frankly admiring of the organizational genius displayed by the right wing in finding donors and benefactors eager to fund the think tanks, institutes, magazines, and endowed academic chairs that made the Reagan Revolution—and the George W. Bush presidency—possible. He presents an indispensable object lesson for any out-of-office party determined to regain political power.

Genres: Politics, History, Nonfiction, American History

368 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

Reviews

[Lobstergirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a history of conservative ideas and practices in the U.S. from about Hayek (author of The Road to Serfdom) to the middle of Reagan's second term as president. (It was published in 1986). Importantly, Blumenthal situates the beginning of the conservative movement in the 1940s, not with the origins of the Republican Party in the 1850s. The conservatives in Blumenthal's telling go out of their way not to align themselves with garden-variety Republicanism. They're different. Some of this comes from the neoconservative wing, whose members were former leftists, Trotskyites - and as converts to conservatism they have the fervor of the evangelical. Blumenthal notes that Ronald Reagan did not campaign as a Republican; he identified himself most often as a "former Democrat."

Blumenthal is of course a liberal, and would go on to become a highly loyal advisor to the Clinton White House. Yet here he is clear-eyed and unsparing when he sees Democrats fail, such as Walter Mondale in 1984. His analysis of Mondale's fundamental misunderstanding of the political system is enlightening.

The book is structured largely chronologically around the biographies and ideologies of important conservative figures: Hayek, Whittaker Chambers, William F. Buckley Jr., Milton Friedman, Norman Podhoretz, Irving Kristol, Jude Wanniski, Arthur Laffer, Jack Kemp, George Gilder, David Stockman, and the man (or is he a deity?) they now all worship: Ronald Reagan. It no longer falls under the rubric of current events, but makes a very compelling history.

[Amy Howard · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was mixed as far as its usefulness. It indeed traces back to the Reagan era, when conservatives who had been in the hinterlands politically decided to consolidate power and push against the prevailing liberal order. And it shows the ways this was accomplished, and the consequences of pushing forward what was not the prevailing consensus of policy, particularly in economics where voodoo economics was given primacy despite being unproven.
On the other hand, this book was written shortly after the events it chronicles, and it seems to assume some familiarity with these players, while also going into some detail on people who are now only bit players. I was hoping to get more analysis of the political philosophies at issue, rather than the history, and so this was of very limited interest.
It’s noteworthy that the book describes neoconservatives as those who had been liberal and became disenchanted and moved to be true believers conservatives. Whereas during the George W Bush presidency, the term came to mean conservatives who were hawkish and adventurous in foreign affairs.

[Lookout · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative about rise of the conservative movement and the think tanks. Dry on parts. Can be confusing with all names referenced.

[Dan Cohen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was hoping this would cover much of Dubya's rise and presidency, but I soon realised that the book is primarily about the development of the movement since WWII and up to Reagan's second election. It's an interesting read for someone like me (unfamiliar with the history) and makes some thought-provoking distinctions between different parts of the modern conservative movement in the US. I did find it a little slow and I couldn't fathom the structure. Worth a read.

[Elise · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got a lot out of this book, though not being intricately involved in modern American politics I sure I missed more of it's significance than I might realise right now.

It was interesting to follow the movement and influence though of certain thought and ideology up until post-Reagan's re-election, especially now with the benefit of being able to look back.

[Velvetink]

*for daughter