In the charged political atmosphere of the United States as of today, there is a clear divergence between the 2 political parties - the Democratic and the Republican Party. Supporters of either party criticize the prevalent policies and trends of each party - the Democratic party is seen as a liberal party which is more supportive of minorities and more supportive of give-aways to the poor; the Republican party is seen as more conservative, more trying to attempt financial balancing, representing the white old section of the country which somehow feels that the country is moving away from the principles that have been in vogue for the past century. Supporters of either party feel that the other party is being irrational and not representing the best for the future of the country.
However, it would surprise a lot of people if they heard about history, about how the party have changed their spots over the years. How would people feel if they realized that the Republican Party was the party to which Lincoln belonged, and how the Democratic party was the one representing the south and on the losing end of the Civil War. It was the Democratic Party that was called the party of traitors, trying to break the union and fighting to support slavery. It is this history of the Republican Party that is sought to be explained in this book, first released in 2003, and then re-published in 2014.
The book covers the entire history of the Republican Party, its more than 150 years history and covers the response of the Party to the election of Barack Obama, and the weak candidates that the party set against him. One caveat is that the book is written by a person (Lewis L. Gould) who identified himself to have liberal leanings and hence is a supporter of the Democratic Party. So, the book seeks to be objective and tries to present the history of the party, covering the various twists of the evolution of the party into its current form.
One major chapter in this transformation was the period of the 1950's-1960's, or even more specifically the 1960's when the Civil Rights movement was at its peak, and where the Democratic Presidents brought in the various acts to ensure the total removal of segregation, a step which the party also realized that meant that the Democratic Party had lost the support of the south for a generation, a gap that was quickly taken up by the Republican Party. At a time of rapid change in society, the Republican Party was able to take on the mantle of appealing to people who sought stability and the values that they had seen in their young times, and who valued conservatism. The book is certainly worth reading, for a supporter and even for those who don't understand why the Republican Party is what it is.
However, it would surprise a lot of people if they heard about history, about how the party have changed their spots over the years. How would people feel if they realized that the Republican Party was the party to which Lincoln belonged, and how the Democratic party was the one representing the south and on the losing end of the Civil War. It was the Democratic Party that was called the party of traitors, trying to break the union and fighting to support slavery. It is this history of the Republican Party that is sought to be explained in this book, first released in 2003, and then re-published in 2014.
The book covers the entire history of the Republican Party, its more than 150 years history and covers the response of the Party to the election of Barack Obama, and the weak candidates that the party set against him. One caveat is that the book is written by a person (Lewis L. Gould) who identified himself to have liberal leanings and hence is a supporter of the Democratic Party. So, the book seeks to be objective and tries to present the history of the party, covering the various twists of the evolution of the party into its current form.
One major chapter in this transformation was the period of the 1950's-1960's, or even more specifically the 1960's when the Civil Rights movement was at its peak, and where the Democratic Presidents brought in the various acts to ensure the total removal of segregation, a step which the party also realized that meant that the Democratic Party had lost the support of the south for a generation, a gap that was quickly taken up by the Republican Party. At a time of rapid change in society, the Republican Party was able to take on the mantle of appealing to people who sought stability and the values that they had seen in their young times, and who valued conservatism. The book is certainly worth reading, for a supporter and even for those who don't understand why the Republican Party is what it is.
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