American Polarization

America is facing a reckoning. Trump and the Erosion of Democracy: Why America’s Institutions Are Failing is a gripping, timely examination of how partisan warfare, collapsing trust, and rising populism are shaking the very foundations of the American republic. Through vivid historical storytelling and sharp analysis, this book reveals how political polarization has reached levels not seen since the Civil War, why faith in Congress, the Supreme Court, and the electoral system is plummeting, and how presidents, governors, and even ordinary citizens are testing the limits of the ...

With Trump back in power, many Americans feel exhausted, furious, and afraid. But when those Americans aim their contempt and rage at wide swaths of fellow citizens on the "other side," it doesn’t weaken Trumpism — it feeds it. Trump thrives on division; contempt and rage help him (just as those emotions aid other highly us-vs-them leaders and activists). Those who wish to defeat Trump must try to understand the decades-long cycle of us-vs-them animosity that led to his rise — and that continue to lead many Americans, on the left and right, to support high-conflict, us-vs-them ...

A bold new history of modern conservatism that finds its origins in the populist right-wing politics of the 1990s Ronald Reagan has long been lionized for building a conservative coalition sustained by an optimistic vision of American exceptionalism, small government, and free markets. But as...

From the celebrated author of the international bestseller The End of History and the Last Man and other books on the most important political questions of our time, comes a strikingly personal intellectual memoir. This program is read by the author. Francis Fukuyama, a leading public...

“Should be required reading for anyone interested in preserving our 246-year experiment in self-government.” —The New York Times Book Review * “Well researched and eloquently presented.” —The Atlantic * “Delivers Cormac McCarthy-worthy drama; while the nonfictional asides imbue...

How a notorious far right organization set the Republican Party on a long march toward extremism At the height of the John Birch Society’s activity in the 1960s, critics dismissed its members as a paranoid fringe. After all, “Birchers” believed that a vast communist conspiracy existed in...

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES AND USA TODAY BESTSELLER A vital exploration as we head into the 2026 midterm elections of how right-wing extremism, media manipulation, and ideological echo chambers have eroded critical thinking and deepened political divisions—and how we can fight back to save our...

A rallying cry to fight the commodification of human attention, with the tools we need to reclaim our humanity, by a group of writers, artists, and activists in the vanguard of the movement “A stirring battle cry on behalf of our shared humanity against the forces that seek to diminish and...

Liberal democracy in America has always contained contradictions—most notably, a noble but abstract commitment to freedom, justice, and equality that, tragically, has seldom been realized in practice. While these contradictions have caused dissent and even violence, there was always an underlying and evolving solidarity drawn from the cultural resources of America’s “hybrid Enlightenment”. James Davison Hunter, who introduced the concept of “culture wars” 30 years ago, tells us in this new book that those historic sources of national solidarity have now largely dissolved.

What If America's Founding Fathers Could See Us Today? Would George Washington, James Madison, Benjamin Franklin, and Alexander Hamilton recognize the Republic they helped create? Or would they warn us that the principles sustaining American democracy are being tested as never before? The United States was conceived as a bold experiment in self-government. Drawing on the lessons of history and political philosophy, the Founders crafted a Constitution designed to safeguard liberty, limit power, and ensure government remained accountable to the people. Through checks and balances, the rule of...

A Sweeping Histoy of the Great State of Wisconsin Wisconsin has always been a crossroads—a place where northern forests meet prairie grasslands, where European immigrant cultures collided with indigenous peoples, where radical reform movements battled corporate power. This sweeping history traces how a fur trade frontier became America's Dairyland, a Progressive laboratory, and ultimately the nation's most critical political battleground. From the effigy mounds of ancient cultures to the 2020 presidential election decided by fewer than 21,000 votes, Wisconsin's story mirrors America's own...

Increasingly, political parties have adopted not only different policies, but different sets of facts. As E. J. Fagan argues, partisan think tanks have helped create these alternate realities in their capacity as de facto formal party organizations. Through the analyses generated by aligned think tanks, political elites on both the left and right frequently offer radically different assessments of a policy's consequences.

How did America become so screwed up? The answer is probably not what you expect. To find the truth, journey through the tumultuous history of a nation that has weathered storms of epic proportions. From the haunting legacy of chattel slavery to the fiery crucible of the Civil War, there has long been a struggle for unity and identity—to shape the American landscape. As brother fought brother on the battlefield, families were torn asunder, and the soil of the nation was stained with the blood of countless fallen soldiers. Yet, even in the aftermath of war, healing remained elusive as ...

The Enemy Is the Division How America Can Stop Fighting Itself and Start Healing America does not have to agree in order to survive. It does have to remember how to disagree. We have been taught to look for the enemy on the other side. Republican or Democrat. Conservative or liberal. Red or blue. But what if the greatest threat to the American democratic republic is not simply the people with whom we disagree, but the machinery that convinces us we must hate them? The Enemy Is the Division begins where Dazzle, Baffle, Divide left off. The first book diagnosed how spectacle, propaganda, fear...

America's political landscape is changing—and most politicians haven't noticed. While Republicans and Democrats continue their endless battles for power, a different movement has quietly become the largest political force in the nation: independent voters. In The Independent Revolution, award-winning author Bruce H. Joffe explores the dramatic rise of Americans who refuse to be defined by party labels and are increasingly demanding a government that serves people rather than partisan interests. Whether you're conservative, liberal, moderate, or politically homeless, this thought-provoking...

Social psychologist Peter T. Coleman explores how conflict resolution and complexity science provide guidance for dealing with seemingly intractable political differences. Deploying the concept of attractors in dynamical systems, he explains why we are stuck in this rut as well as the unexpected ways that deeply rooted oppositions can and do change. 

Donald Trump's presidency fundamentally altered American politics, media, and society. This book examines his enduring impact, analyzing how his unique approach to rhetoric, policy, and leadership continues to influence national discourse. Covering economics, cultural divides, media strategies, and foreign relations, The Trump Effect explores how Trump's unconventional leadership simultaneously energized supporters and polarized opponents, reshaping America's social fabric. For anyone seeking to better understand the lasting consequences of the Trump presidency across politics, business, ...

A Pulitzer Prize winner’s intimate portrait of a church, its radical mission, and its riveting crisis. "Jennifer Pickens adopts an even-keeled reportorial cadence and timbre well suited to Griswold's immersion journalism, which recounts the rise and fall of Circle of Hope."—AudioFile “The...

Is the end of the American experiment near? Or is this chaos exactly what we need? Something has fundamentally changed in American politics. The lawfare, the ideological wars, and the breakdown of compromise have left many wondering if the country is collapsing. In A Nation Divided, political commentator Steve Hartkopf argues that what looks like a crisis is actually history repeating itself in a predictable, necessary loop. From Hamilton vs. Jefferson to Trump vs. the Bureaucracy, this book reveals that the great dramas of American politics are not glitches—they are features that provide...

Uncover the fierce battle for American democracy in this gripping political history of factions and modern polarization. Instead of memorizing names and dates, you will experience the intense collisions over liberty, equality, and authority that forged a superpower. Perfect for your morning...