Conservatives Without Conscience

By: John W. Dean

Narrated by: Robertson Dean

Length: 7 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

John Dean's last New York Times best seller, Worse Than Watergate: The Secret Presidency of George W. Bush, offered the former White House insider's unique and telling perspective on George W. Bush's presidency. Once again, Dean employs his distinctive knowledge and understanding of Washington politics and process to examine the conservative movement's current inner circle of radical Republican leaders, from Capitol Hill to Pennsylvania Avenue to K Street and beyond.

In Conservatives Without Conscience, Dean not only highlights specific right-wing-driven GOP policies but also probes the conservative mind-set, identifying recurring qualities such as the unbridled viciousness toward those daring to disagree with them, as well as the big business favoritism that costs taxpayers billions. Dean identifies specific examples of how court packing is seeking to form a judiciary that is activist by its very nature, how religious piety is producing politics run amok, and how concealed indifference to the founding principles of liberty and equality is pushing America further and further from its constitutional foundations.

By the end, Dean paints a vivid picture of what's happening at the top levels of the Republican Party, a noble political party corrupted by its current leaders who cloak their actions in moral superiority while packaging their programs as blatant propaganda. Dean, certainly no alarmist, finds disturbing signs that current right-wing authoritarian thinking, when conflated with the dominating personalities of the conservative leadership could take the United States toward its own version of fascism.

©2006 John W. Dean (P)2006 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"A penetrating and highly disturbing portrait of many of the major players in Republican politics and power...riveting." (Booklist, starred review)

"A fierce indictment of Republican politicians...the sheer outrage in Dean's book has power of its own." (Chicago Tribune)

A Book Every American Should Read

John Dean has put together not only a very well written factual history of the rise of authoritarian conservatism in American but he pulls from excellent phychological profiling to add another demension to this book. As someone who had personally had substanial political contact with some of the players at the forefront of this movement mentioned in the book, as well as those who have opposed it, I can say that when my personal knowledge overlaps with Dean's commentary and factual assertions, they are 100% accurate. I couldn't put the book down and found myself continually replaying certain sections because of the wealth of knowledge Dean present.

Fascinating

Say what you will, but if Barry Goldwater had a problem with the current strain of Conservatism then something is terribly wrong.

Dean found himself the target of slander campaign run by his old Watergate friends including born-again Christian, Chuck Colson. He started this book, along with Goldwater, to find out why Conservativism has taken on take-no-prisoners approach capable of blinding its adherents to, if not morality, then simple consistency of thought. How do Conservatives let Bill Bennett of the hook for a gambling problem or give Rush Limbaugh a pass on his drug abuse while dragging Max Clealand's patriotism through the mud?

Dean's a wonderful writer and Robertson Dean reads wonderfully. I've found myself sitting in driveways and parking lots far too frequently while listening to this. It might even get me back to the gym.

excellent

Would you listen to Conservatives Without Conscience again? Why?

no, I got the information I needed and wouldn't have a need to listen again.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

very interesting book

Foretelling and Predictive ...

About two years ago is when I first read this, I was actually amazed that Dean published this a decade after the Clinton impeachment and before the 2008 election of Obama. He diagrams the changes that Newt Gingrich brought to the House rules, and the fences he put up between the two parties. The takeaway is that historically in the American two-party system, coalitions are built ahead of elections. In other political systems around the world, alliances are formed after a majority-minority party wins. We see this often in Europe, Israel, and other parliamentary democracies.
It is pretty much prevailing historical theory now that beginning with the passage of the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts in 1964 and 1965 is when the left-right spectrum within the two major American parties began to erode. Nixon's 1968 southern strategy, and in the same year, the rise of George Wallace's third-party challenge to the Humphry-Nixon race is indicative of this.
Dean takes the political 1968 thesis father with the arrival of Newt Gingrich and Tom Deley on the scene and the polarization, which initially lead to the Clinton impeachment. The Tuesday through Thursday House workweek, the encouragement for GOP members to leave their families at home and commute to Washington. With families no longer in Washington House members from both parties no longer socialize with one another on any level from kids playing sports to family BBQs. Needless to say, Dean's observations help understand the place America is in today with a Cult of Personality POTUS and a cadre of followers that enables his worst instincts. :(

Great insight.

This book provided some thoughtful and deep insight into the minds of conservatives in a great and thought provoking manner... thank you!

Painstakingly pedantic!

I bought this with a most sincere desire to ‘understand the thought process of the modern day liberal.’ I perceive John Dean as honest and forthright, so surely he’d be able to provide some insight.

With an open mind and sincere desire, I listened non-stop during a long Labor Day Weekend car drive. Sadly, several hours later, I’m more confused than ever.

On and on it went, endless babbling, countless inconsistencies, rambling with bitter accusations and unnecessary character assassinations… all with an absence of point. Yet, I kept listening, hoping for enlightenment, finding myself mumbling “Where are you going with this?” “What is your point?” “Give me a punch line!” Between the endless babbling and countless inconsistencies, I can attest that it never arrived.

Conservative Without a Conscience

Boring in the extreme.

Red meat for Republican hating, left-winged loons.

Dean presents page after page of armchair soci
ological babble to prove that nearly all Republicans are arrogant, unthinking morons who just live to screw the little guy. Save yourself $20, just scream "I hate Republicans" one hundred times. You'll feel better and save $20.

Petty and Dull

I found this book to be a bore. I think there is an entire chapter criticizing conservatives because they cannot define themselves in a concise manner. Who cares? I was hoping for a thoughtful perspective that would make me think. What I found was a book full of petty, partisan name-calling and sweeping generalizations. Skip this one.