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Rules for Radical Conservatives: Beating the Left at Its Own Game to Take Back America
Are you a frustrated conservative shocked by the bunch of far Left fanatics driving the bus—and our future—off a cliff? It’s time to fight back with the same ruthlessness that has served the radicals so well—not just now, but for the long term. And who better to reveal their strategies—and their fatal weaknesses—than one of their own? Playing on his all-too-typical hubris and good old greed, we’ve recruited well-known liberal apparatchik David Kahane to lead conservatives out of the political wilderness, whether he means to or not. Is he arrogant and obnoxious? Absolutely. Does he deliver the goods? You betcha. We’ll let Dave speak for
Please allow me to introduce myself. . . . My name is David and I’m going to share some secrets. I’m going to take you into the smoke-free back rooms of today’s progressive political machine to reveal how it really operates—and how you can bring it down. I’ll lay out the rules we radicals have used to run circles around you, and clue you in on how to make them work for you, too.
How do I know this stuff? As the son of the sainted “Che” Kahane, I’ve been schooled in the art of seizing and holding political power as we transform America one antiquated tradition and constitutional clause at a time. Now I work in Hollywood, where I’ve perfected the game pioneered by such pros as Machiavelli, Saul Alinsky, and Al Capone, father of the immortal Chicago Way. Read on and learn from our time-tested
• Know your enemy, his intentions, his weapons, and his weaknesses. You too can play relentless, on-message hardball with every scandal, hypocrisy, lie, and fundamentally flawed policy your adversaries dish up.
• Become what you behold. Adopt some of our scorched-earth tactics, best described in David Mamet’s “They pull a knife, you pull a gun . ”
• Take no prisoners. Attack our premises, expose their true nature and consequences, and pin them on us, hard.
• Never cede anything to the other side, philosophically speaking. Force the Left to argue facts, not emotions. We hate that.
• Treat us with the same respect we give you . None.
• It is better to be feared than liked, especially by your enemies. And it helps to show up for the fight. (Note to past and future Republican candidates.)
Why am I telling you all this? Because I thrive on making trouble and, frankly, because I’m proud of what my team has done. Between us, I don’t think it matters if I turn over our playbook to you at this late date. I don’t think you can get it together to stop us now. Plus, I got a lot of money.
Happy reading, America! You think you can take us down? Go for it. I dare you.
Please allow me to introduce myself. . . . My name is David and I’m going to share some secrets. I’m going to take you into the smoke-free back rooms of today’s progressive political machine to reveal how it really operates—and how you can bring it down. I’ll lay out the rules we radicals have used to run circles around you, and clue you in on how to make them work for you, too.
How do I know this stuff? As the son of the sainted “Che” Kahane, I’ve been schooled in the art of seizing and holding political power as we transform America one antiquated tradition and constitutional clause at a time. Now I work in Hollywood, where I’ve perfected the game pioneered by such pros as Machiavelli, Saul Alinsky, and Al Capone, father of the immortal Chicago Way. Read on and learn from our time-tested
• Know your enemy, his intentions, his weapons, and his weaknesses. You too can play relentless, on-message hardball with every scandal, hypocrisy, lie, and fundamentally flawed policy your adversaries dish up.
• Become what you behold. Adopt some of our scorched-earth tactics, best described in David Mamet’s “They pull a knife, you pull a gun . ”
• Take no prisoners. Attack our premises, expose their true nature and consequences, and pin them on us, hard.
• Never cede anything to the other side, philosophically speaking. Force the Left to argue facts, not emotions. We hate that.
• Treat us with the same respect we give you . None.
• It is better to be feared than liked, especially by your enemies. And it helps to show up for the fight. (Note to past and future Republican candidates.)
Why am I telling you all this? Because I thrive on making trouble and, frankly, because I’m proud of what my team has done. Between us, I don’t think it matters if I turn over our playbook to you at this late date. I don’t think you can get it together to stop us now. Plus, I got a lot of money.
Happy reading, America! You think you can take us down? Go for it. I dare you.
279 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
March 23, 2011
This book was written by David Kahane, a progressive/socialist strategist, but in reality a pen name. The actual writer is an un-named Conservative columnist. The book represents a reaction and counter-balance to the leftist manual "Rules for Radicals" by Saul Alinsky. The book is a sort of "letter from the devil" or perhaps more accurately a letter from one of his missionaries, Kahane. It purports to give us an inside look at how dark side leftists and statists view Conservatives. Why would the devil want to give out this information? Because the fight has just been too easy, with Conservatives crying defenseless in the dust. By giving away some of their “secrets”, the devil can bring more enjoyment to his ultimate triumph. The intention is to give us a humorous but truthful account of how the ends-justifies-the means crowd operates so that an effective way may be seen to counter them. Part One sets forth who the enemy is, what they want, how they have operated through history and the tactics they use to neutralize the opposition. There are many enlightening moments. Part Two offers what Kahane thinks are the solutions which will enable Conservatives to successfully defend the experiment known as America and to counter attack those who envision a new socialist world model called “Amerikkka”.
Kahane is often funny but a little too clever. He assumes that we are familiar, especially in Part One with a huge variety of movies, fiction novels, plays, music, and television shows that many may have been to busy to spend time with. Also he is, he tells us a “screenwriter” and so must entertain us with the invented dialogue of the playwright. This gets tedious so quickly that I must confess, I skimmed much of Part One. Part Two on solutions was more interesting. Some critics have said that his solutions were too Machiavellian--- adapt the same tactics as the opposition, because the ends really do justify the means. There is an element of this perhaps, but I don’t entirely agree. For example, Rule 6 is “At All Times, Think Constitutionally”. This is of course the opposite of leftist philosophy which is more to destroy or render meaningless the Constitution.
I think the book is worth reading. You may especially enjoy it if you are a connoisseur of the entertainment media…. Which I suppose, perhaps unfortunately, I am not.
Kahane is often funny but a little too clever. He assumes that we are familiar, especially in Part One with a huge variety of movies, fiction novels, plays, music, and television shows that many may have been to busy to spend time with. Also he is, he tells us a “screenwriter” and so must entertain us with the invented dialogue of the playwright. This gets tedious so quickly that I must confess, I skimmed much of Part One. Part Two on solutions was more interesting. Some critics have said that his solutions were too Machiavellian--- adapt the same tactics as the opposition, because the ends really do justify the means. There is an element of this perhaps, but I don’t entirely agree. For example, Rule 6 is “At All Times, Think Constitutionally”. This is of course the opposite of leftist philosophy which is more to destroy or render meaningless the Constitution.
I think the book is worth reading. You may especially enjoy it if you are a connoisseur of the entertainment media…. Which I suppose, perhaps unfortunately, I am not.
January 22, 2011
I enjoy the Kahane persona columns on NRO, and therefore I picked up this book for cheap when a local bookstore went under. The premise is that Kahane (the pseudonym for a conservative screenwriter and novelist--Andrew Klavan is my suspect) is a liberal who is revealing to us poor lost conservatives the game plan of the Left and what we might do to thwart it, in the spirit that it's no fun if we don't fight back at all. C.S. Lewis' Screwtape Letters are referenced outright, and the tone is similar.
The first half of the book "reveals" the plan of the Left to fundamentally remake America. Kahane asserts that we are in a non-violent civil war, and that only the Left realizes this and only they are acting accordingly. They have made a Long March through the institutions, taking over media, Hollywood, the universities, the schools, and most of the government. They use political correctness to control our speech and therefore our very thoughts, and constantly berate America for its faults, especially the Original Sin of our nation: slavery and racism. "The Civil Rights Act was not passed until 1964, therefore everything about America prior to 1964 was evil." This shuts down any nostalgia for any aspect of society before the "liberal revolution of the 1960s."
Kahane sounds much like Rush Limbaugh in these assertions that liberals are bitter enemies, to be defeated, who do not share the same fundamental faith in America's founding ideas, instead of simply politically different. He frames the American political scene as a black-and-white battle between the forces of good and the forces of evil, and naturally the Left are the bad guys. His prescription is that conservatives need to pick up the weapons of their enemies and fight back, just as ruthlessly. He argues for a Long March of our own, to take back Hollywood and the schools. He argues for our own answers to Saturday Night Live and the Daily Show, where we can heap ridicule on the heads of the Left. He argues that conservatives need to live, eat, and breathe politics, the same way the Left does (which to me is the biggest disadvantage--whereas a liberal wants to make everything political, from food to sexuality to the CO2 we exhale, a conservative just wants to be left alone!).
I'm torn in how I feel about this book. I don't view my "progressive" friends as followers of Lucifer who want to destroy America simply because they can, or because they hate it. I don't believe there is a large segment of our society who is actively working to subvert the Constitution, or who has warm feelings for the Soviet Union. I do smile at such turns of phrase as the "criminal organization known as the Democrat Party", and I'm certainly cognizant of the Party of Slavery, Segregation, and Sedition, of Tammany Hall, of the Chicago Daley machine, etc.
I do believe in the universal struggle for liberty, that it is only preserved with eternal vigilance, and I do feel that the modern American left is less interested in liberty than it is in power. I think they are wrong; otherwise I'd be on their side. I want them defeated in elections and I want the Leviathan of the State drastically reduced. What I'm not sure I can absorb is Kahane's Manichean view of the struggle. Perhaps I do not want to see my opponents as being this ruthless and relentness, simply because I doubt the resilience of the American people--I fear we have lost much of the vigor of 1776, and my reading of history shows that the normal course of a society means we will eventually succumb. As Kahane points out, we are always on the defensive, standing athwart history yelling "Stop!"
So while I found Kahane's wit bracing, and his clarion call somewhat energizing, in the final analysis this book depresses me.
The first half of the book "reveals" the plan of the Left to fundamentally remake America. Kahane asserts that we are in a non-violent civil war, and that only the Left realizes this and only they are acting accordingly. They have made a Long March through the institutions, taking over media, Hollywood, the universities, the schools, and most of the government. They use political correctness to control our speech and therefore our very thoughts, and constantly berate America for its faults, especially the Original Sin of our nation: slavery and racism. "The Civil Rights Act was not passed until 1964, therefore everything about America prior to 1964 was evil." This shuts down any nostalgia for any aspect of society before the "liberal revolution of the 1960s."
Kahane sounds much like Rush Limbaugh in these assertions that liberals are bitter enemies, to be defeated, who do not share the same fundamental faith in America's founding ideas, instead of simply politically different. He frames the American political scene as a black-and-white battle between the forces of good and the forces of evil, and naturally the Left are the bad guys. His prescription is that conservatives need to pick up the weapons of their enemies and fight back, just as ruthlessly. He argues for a Long March of our own, to take back Hollywood and the schools. He argues for our own answers to Saturday Night Live and the Daily Show, where we can heap ridicule on the heads of the Left. He argues that conservatives need to live, eat, and breathe politics, the same way the Left does (which to me is the biggest disadvantage--whereas a liberal wants to make everything political, from food to sexuality to the CO2 we exhale, a conservative just wants to be left alone!).
I'm torn in how I feel about this book. I don't view my "progressive" friends as followers of Lucifer who want to destroy America simply because they can, or because they hate it. I don't believe there is a large segment of our society who is actively working to subvert the Constitution, or who has warm feelings for the Soviet Union. I do smile at such turns of phrase as the "criminal organization known as the Democrat Party", and I'm certainly cognizant of the Party of Slavery, Segregation, and Sedition, of Tammany Hall, of the Chicago Daley machine, etc.
I do believe in the universal struggle for liberty, that it is only preserved with eternal vigilance, and I do feel that the modern American left is less interested in liberty than it is in power. I think they are wrong; otherwise I'd be on their side. I want them defeated in elections and I want the Leviathan of the State drastically reduced. What I'm not sure I can absorb is Kahane's Manichean view of the struggle. Perhaps I do not want to see my opponents as being this ruthless and relentness, simply because I doubt the resilience of the American people--I fear we have lost much of the vigor of 1776, and my reading of history shows that the normal course of a society means we will eventually succumb. As Kahane points out, we are always on the defensive, standing athwart history yelling "Stop!"
So while I found Kahane's wit bracing, and his clarion call somewhat energizing, in the final analysis this book depresses me.
January 3, 2012
David Kahane has revealed the secret to winning the battle for the soul of the U.S.A. He has looked at the Left Wing and seen what most people refuse to see, or on seeing refuse to believe. The secret is that there is no secret. All you need to do is watch what they do, listen to what they say and then believe that they actually mean just that. When you read a headline that says "We're all Socialists Now," believe that this is exactly what the Left intends to do. Don't make the mistake of assuming that those on the Left have your best interests at heart. They don't. If you believe in the Constitution as it was written and wish we could return to government as envisioned by our Founders, know that the Left hates you, wants to control you, and is actively seeking to destroy you and all that you hold dear.
Kahane has written the battle plan to retake the moral high ground. He has turned over the rock and revealed all the Leftist horrors there under. We have the weapons and the tools to win, now. If only we have the will to use then.
Kahane has written the battle plan to retake the moral high ground. He has turned over the rock and revealed all the Leftist horrors there under. We have the weapons and the tools to win, now. If only we have the will to use then.
July 21, 2011
For heavens sake, get to a point! And make a cogent point. I had hoped this book would be funny and informative. It was neither.
September 22, 2011
Top notch sarcasm and enlightenment are in store for the reader. Liberals, you pick this book up at your own risk...
December 5, 2019
I'm not sure where to begin with this. The whole book is written in character as a self-loathing and overtly evil Democrat (except for the intro written by his even more evil father, who views the author as his pawn, so there's a lot to unpack there). It gets old fast. Because "David" cynically refers to both "his side" (liberals) and "your side" (presumably conservatives) as being evil, stupid, lazy, or whatever insult, it's difficult to know when the actual author is being satirical or earnest, and at times both the character and the author attack the reader for the same reason in an attempt to stir up emotions. I'll admit that I don't agree with much of the actual writer believes, but I suspect that even for people who do this book functions as something of a political rorschach test: depending on your viewpoint you can interpret the level of irony to suit your needs.
The first half functions as "Kahane's" manifesto, outlining who he is, how "his side" is taking over America, how they've accomplished this, how great Mao Zedong is, etc. It's repetitive, self-contradictory, and for some reason seems just as focused on attacking screenwriters as on the people who we are told are actively dismantling America. Much of the proof we are given of the evils of liberalism come in the form of unrelated movie quotes, with very little detail about why they are applicable. The crimes of various members of the democratic party are conveyed by comparing them to characters from "The Godfather," along with a brief description of that character's personality, but because there is neither a description of that character's role or his corresponding politician's misdoings, this list is ultimately unhelpful. This section is also interspersed with transcripts of a fictional conversation between a conservative and a liberal which added nothing to the narrative. This section could have used a lot of editing.
The second half actually breaks down the rules for radical conservatives, which if that's what you're reading this book for, they do exist. The way they are broken down feels juvenile, even by the standards of political satire, but at least this section is organized and somewhat clearer. That said, the really interesting thing about this book is that it was published in 2010 but described Donald Trump's campaign surprisingly well, years before it happened, right down to the idea of running for president with your campaign managed by the head of a paper or magazine--a quick Google search shows that the actual author, Michael Walsh, worked closely with Andrew Breitbart, putting him just two degrees of separation from Trump's campaign manager, Steve Bannon. I don't know that I can say this knowledge improves the book, but it did at least make the read more interesting.
The first half functions as "Kahane's" manifesto, outlining who he is, how "his side" is taking over America, how they've accomplished this, how great Mao Zedong is, etc. It's repetitive, self-contradictory, and for some reason seems just as focused on attacking screenwriters as on the people who we are told are actively dismantling America. Much of the proof we are given of the evils of liberalism come in the form of unrelated movie quotes, with very little detail about why they are applicable. The crimes of various members of the democratic party are conveyed by comparing them to characters from "The Godfather," along with a brief description of that character's personality, but because there is neither a description of that character's role or his corresponding politician's misdoings, this list is ultimately unhelpful. This section is also interspersed with transcripts of a fictional conversation between a conservative and a liberal which added nothing to the narrative. This section could have used a lot of editing.
The second half actually breaks down the rules for radical conservatives, which if that's what you're reading this book for, they do exist. The way they are broken down feels juvenile, even by the standards of political satire, but at least this section is organized and somewhat clearer. That said, the really interesting thing about this book is that it was published in 2010 but described Donald Trump's campaign surprisingly well, years before it happened, right down to the idea of running for president with your campaign managed by the head of a paper or magazine--a quick Google search shows that the actual author, Michael Walsh, worked closely with Andrew Breitbart, putting him just two degrees of separation from Trump's campaign manager, Steve Bannon. I don't know that I can say this knowledge improves the book, but it did at least make the read more interesting.
June 14, 2025
Confusing, minimally useful, and tiresome. I kept forgetting that the POV character was supposed to be a liberal, because he sounded so much like a conservative pundit. At one point he referred to the reader's group (the "them" of his "us vs. them") as progressives, which REALLY threw me off. This was published in 2010, so a bit before "make America great AGAIN," but still! Conservatives don't want progress; they want to CONSERVE things the WAY THEY ARE. And for quite some time now, most people who call themselves conservative have actually been actually reactionary: they want to GO BACK to the way things USED to be. "Return to family values," remember that? I do.
Anyway, when I was able to keep things straight, there were a few things I found useful - mostly the exhortation to go ahead and say what you think, even if it makes people uncomfortable. And then decry "political correctness." 😏 Oh, is pointing out bigotry not 'politically correct'? Awww.
And the use of humor to normalize ideas. I need some good lefty jokes!
I think with the intended audience this book would work a lot better, because in that case, if it actually DID sound like a progressive narrator, it would make readers uncomfortable. Having a voice that sounds conservative makes it feel familiar, and therefore more enjoyable for them.
Anyway, when I was able to keep things straight, there were a few things I found useful - mostly the exhortation to go ahead and say what you think, even if it makes people uncomfortable. And then decry "political correctness." 😏 Oh, is pointing out bigotry not 'politically correct'? Awww.
And the use of humor to normalize ideas. I need some good lefty jokes!
I think with the intended audience this book would work a lot better, because in that case, if it actually DID sound like a progressive narrator, it would make readers uncomfortable. Having a voice that sounds conservative makes it feel familiar, and therefore more enjoyable for them.
July 26, 2021
A witty and at times funny recounting of political history in this country. That is where Kahane is at his best. The racial guilt of the democratic party may indeed be what's behind the Woke mobs of today but it is likely where the left has found the greatest opportunity to grab power which Kahane does allude to. The solutions are wasteful I think. The typical reader isn't going to start a new media outlet or center for higher learning. Acting like a tantrum throwing 4 year old is unhelpful (though seems to work for students at Yale). Overall an entertaining read but does little beyond cement the Right in its distain for the Left.
February 15, 2017
Superb...
A libtard writes a wonderful and hilarious book! A must read. I don't care what your politics might be! Just read it, and take a whole second or two to think about it.
A libtard writes a wonderful and hilarious book! A must read. I don't care what your politics might be! Just read it, and take a whole second or two to think about it.
April 20, 2013
To be funny, satire needs to have at least a modicum of plausibility. Here the words put in Kahane's mouth are so over-the-top as to destroy the illusion. That leaves you with a painfully unfunny book that has no purpose. I didn't expect to learn anything (like I would from, for example, a Sowell book). And he definitely didn't exceed my expectations on this front. Therefore, if it isn't funny, it isn't worth reading. I got through about 75% of the book before I gave it up as the meaningless drivel it is. Life is too short to read crappy books.
In hindsight I think the first half might just be a collection of NRO columns. The sections are only vaguely related to each other. The second half is just barely better, which is why I gave the book 3 stars instead of 2.
In hindsight I think the first half might just be a collection of NRO columns. The sections are only vaguely related to each other. The second half is just barely better, which is why I gave the book 3 stars instead of 2.
July 5, 2011
Written in the spirit of C. S. Lewis' Screwtape Letters, it lays out some rules on who to win back the country from the socialist menace of the Left/Democratic Party.
March 24, 2016
A funny satirical look at politics, written as though by a liberal.
January 13, 2016
I read part of it but had to return to Library
January 17, 2016
It was pretty good. Funny. Snarky. I would like to review it to go through the major points.
March 22, 2017
Challenged my otherwise firm belief that book-burning is never justified.
May 2, 2017
Outstanding summary of all the left’s tricks and what the right can do to counter then (be revanchist). It is useful to have read beforehand Alinsky’s "Rules for Radicals," C. S. Lewis’ "Screwtape Letters," and Gullett’s "Cooking Alinsky’s Goose." It is also useful to have a familiarity with contemorary culture and politics. Doing so gives one the mental framework and viewpoint from where Kahane is speaking. It is the totality of Kahane’s message: describing the enormity of the problem, the extent to which the ideology of the left has permeated all of society in an effort to destroy America, and what we can do to fight it that is brilliant.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews