Other books that might interest you

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  Civil War by Other Means -...

  Jeremi Suri

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  In 1865, the Confederacy was comprehensively defeated, its economy shattered, its leaders in exile or in jail. Yet in the years that followed, Lincoln's vision of a genuinely united country never took root. Apart from a few brief months, when the presence of the Union army in the South proved liberating for newly freed Black Americans, the military victory was squandered. Old white supremacist efforts returned, more ferocious than before. 
   
   
   
  In Civil War by Other Means, Jeremi Suri shows how resistance to a more equal Union began immediately. From the first postwar riots to the return of Confederate exiles, to the impeachment of Andrew Johnson, to the highly contested and consequential election of 1876, Suri explores the conflicts and questions Americans wrestled with as competing visions of democracy, race, and freedom came to a vicious breaking point. 
   
   
   
  What emerges is a vivid and at times unsettling portrait of a country striving to rebuild itself, but unable to compromise on or adhere to the most basic democratic tenets. What should have been a moment of national renewal was ultimately wasted, with reverberations still felt today. The recent shocks to American democracy are rooted in this forgotten, urgent history.

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  American Epic - Reading the US...

  Garrett Epps

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  In 1987, E. L. Doctorow celebrated the Constitution's bicentennial by reading it. "It is five thousand words long but reads like fifty thousand," he said. Distinguished legal scholar Garrett Epps disagrees. It's about 7,500 words. And Doctorow "missed a good deal of high rhetoric, many literary tropes, and even a trace of, if not wit, at least irony," he writes. 
   
   
   
  In American Epic, Epps takes us through a complete reading of the Constitution to achieve an appreciation of its power and a holistic understanding of what it says. In this book he seeks not to provide a definitive interpretation, but to listen to the language and ponder its meaning. He draws on four modes of reading: scriptural, legal, lyric, and epic. The Constitution's first three words, for example, sound spiritual—but Epps finds them to be more aspirational than prayer-like. He turns the Second Amendment into a poem to illuminate its ambiguity. He notices oddities and omissions. The Constitution lays out rules for presidential appointment of officers, for example, but not removal. Should the Senate approve each firing? Can it withdraw its "advice and consent" and force a resignation? And he challenges himself, as seen in his surprising discussion of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in light of Article 4, which orders states to give "full faith and credit" to the acts of other states.

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  The Impeachment Power - The Law...

  Keith E. Whittington

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  We are witnessing an unprecedented moment in American politics in which impeachments are increasingly common. In today's partisan environment, it is more vital than ever that government officials, scholars, and ordinary citizens understand what an impeachment can reasonably be expected to accomplish. In this incisive and accessible book, Keith Whittington provides needed clarity on the constitutional power of impeachment. 
   
   
   
  Drawing insights from American and British history, congressional practice, and the language of the Constitution itself, Whittington shows how impeachment is a tool for checking abuses of elective office and defending constitutional norms. While we have come to associate impeachment with the presidency, it can be used to remedy gross misconduct by an array of officers of the federal government. Whittington cautions against abusing this immense and consequential power to settle political scores, demonstrating how it undermines the independence of the branches and makes Congress the seat of political power. 
   
   
   
  A must-listen for the informed citizen, The Impeachment Power argues that impeachment is ultimately a political instrument and gives us the perspective we need to recognize when an impeachment might be useful and when we are better served by looking for alternative ways to solve our political problems.

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  The Shortest History of War -...

  Gwynne Dyer

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  War has always been a defining feature of human society. This new addition to the Shortest History series explains why we do it—and how we can stop. 
   
   
   
  Russia's invasion of Ukraine has punctured the longest stretch of peace between major powers since WWII, bringing the horrors of warfare—past, present, and future—to the forefront of listeners' minds. In The Shortest History of War, internationally acclaimed historian Gwynne Dyer adds urgently needed context. 
   
   
   
  Dyer ably charts the evolution of violent conflict: tribal aggression, classical combat, limited war, total war, and cold war—followed by present-day terrorism, nuclear threats, and the development of lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS). His brilliant, brisk history is a harrowing must-listen for all who wonder: How will rival superpowers with unprecedented weapons shape the future of our interconnected world?

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  Exurbia Now - The Battleground...

  David Masciotra

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  The suburbs have become too liberal and diverse for many white American conservatives, so "exurbia"—areas outside the cities and their suburbs—are becoming the staging ground for the radical right extremist insurgency . . . 
   
   
   
  Beyond a fanatical devotion to former president Donald Trump, one of the curious things that united the rank and file of the January 6 insurrectionist mob was that many of them were residents of one of America's fastest growing residential areas: Exurbia. In this brilliant work of political and cultural inquiry, veteran political journalist David Masciotra provides a definitive account of what exurbia is, how it came to be, and how it's transforming American life. Zooming in outside the greater metropolitan area of Chicago—where Masciotra grew up—he shows how exurbia has become a safe space to fly the MAGA flag and romanticize the mores of the pre-civil rights, pre-feminist, pre-gay rights 1950s. 
   
   
   
  But, as Masciotra also shows, reactionary white flight is not the whole story of small-town America. The story often lost is the power and persistence of small-town liberals—people who believe in equality, celebrate diversity, and enroll in movements for justice. Exurbia, as it turns out, is ground zero for the fight over a democracy mightily beleaguered, yet still full of promise, and still worth fighting for.

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  Deceptive Influence - Using...

  Cito Harder

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  Deceptive influence is a powerful tool used to manipulate thoughts, emotions, and decisions without the awareness of the affected individual. It operates through misleading tactics that distort reality, making people believe in false narratives or act against their best interests. This form of influence is found in various aspects of life, from personal relationships and workplaces to politics, marketing, and media. While influence itself is a natural part of human interaction, deception adds a layer of unethical persuasion that raises moral and psychological concerns. 
  At its core, deceptive influence relies on psychological vulnerabilities. People tend to trust familiar sources, respond emotionally before rationally analyzing information, and make decisions based on incomplete or distorted data. Manipulators exploit these tendencies by using selective truth, exaggeration, omission of key facts, and emotional appeals to push individuals toward specific actions or beliefs. The effectiveness of deceptive influence is largely due to its subtlety; victims often fail to recognize they are being misled until it is too late. 
  One of the most concerning aspects of deceptive influence is its widespread presence in modern society. In personal relationships, individuals may use gaslighting, guilt-tripping, or selective storytelling to control or manipulate their partners, friends, or family members. In the workplace, deceptive influence appears in corporate messaging, office politics, and misleading leadership practices. Companies use psychological tactics to create false urgency, encourage impulsive decisions, or present misleading information to employees and consumers.

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