The longest con : how grifters, swindlers, and frauds hijacked American conservatism / Joe Conason ; foreword by George T. Conway III.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Conason, Joe, author.

Conway, George T., author of foreword.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Republican Party (U.S. : 1854- ).

Conservatism--United States--History.

Conservatism.

Political corruption--United States--History.

Political corruption.

Right-wing extremists--United States.

Right-wing extremists.

Swindlers and swindling--United States.

Swindlers and swindling.

Fraud--Social aspects--United States.

Fraud.

Physical Description:

xi, 303 pages ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : St. Martin's Press, 2024.

Summary:

"A sardonic chronicle of how conservatism turned into a racketeering enterprise - and why Donald Trump became the living emblem of the American right's moral decay. The Longest Con tells the fascinating story of the partisan con artists who have corrupted conservative politics in our time, creating a toxic phenomenon that culminated in the election of Donald Trump, a bumptious fraud whose checkered career and tawdry retinue, including his presidential cabinet, have featured almost every variety of scam. But long before he appeared, Trump's path to power was blazed by the motley horde of swindlers and quacks who preceded him. From the "professional anti-communists" (whose tactics even J. Edgar Hoover despised) to the "populist" grifters of the Tea Party movement and the religious charlatans of the "prosperity gospel" (who provided a pious front for Trump), the right-wing ripoff has remained remarkably consistent, even as personalities change and new technologies emerge: Stir up anger and resentment, demonize political opponents, promise vengeance, and collect donations from the gullible. It's a highly lucrative game that any unscrupulous charlatan can play, as many have - and they are named in these pages. In an unsparing and often comic narrative, Joe Conason explores the right's long, steep descent into a movement whose principal aim is not to protect freedom or defend the Constitution, but merely to line the pockets of pretenders and blowhards whose malevolent tactics now endanger the nation"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

The role model

The profits of paranoia

"Experts" and patrioteers

The wizard of id

Nixon's avaricious avengers

Feeding the "conservative" hogs

Profits (and prophets) without honor

Let us prey

Spilling the tea party

How not to get rich quick (or cure cancer, ever)

In very bad faith

The king of the con men

A predatory presidency

Guns, walls, and the culture of impunity

Is the big lie the biggest grift?

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781250621160

125062116X

OCLC:

1393206162