Kirjahaku

"They called it the Reagan revolution," Ronald Reagan noted in his Farewell Address. "Well, I'll accept that, but for me it always seemed more like the great rediscovery, a rediscovery of our values and our common sense." Nearly two decades after that 1989 speech, debate continues to rage over just how revolutionary those Reagan years were. The Reagan Revolution: A Very Short Introduction identifies and tackles some of the controversies and historical mysteries that continue to swirl around Reagan and his legacy, while providing an illuminating look at some of the era's defining personalities, ideas, and accomplishments. Gil Troy, a well-known historian who is a frequent commentator on contemporary politics, sheds much light on the phenomenon known as the Reagan Revolution, situating the reception of Reagan's actions within the contemporary liberal and conservative political scene. While most conservatives refuse to countenance any criticism of their hero, an articulate minority laments that he did not go far enough. And while some liberals continue to mourn just how far he went in changing America, others continue to mock him as a disengaged, do-nothing dunce. Nevertheless, as Troy shows, two and a half decades after Reagan's 1981 inauguration, his legacy continues to shape American politics, diplomacy, culture, and economics. Both Bill Clinton and George W. Bush modeled much of their presidential leadership styles on Reagan's example, while many of the debates of the '80s about the budget, tax cutting, defense-spending, and American values still rage. Love him or hate him, Ronald Reagan remains the most influential president since Franklin D. Roosevelt, and one of the most controversial. This marvelous book places the Reagan Revolution in the broader context of postwar politics, highlighting the legacies of these years on subsequent presidents and on American life today. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

On November 10, 1975, the UN General Assembly passed a resolution declaring Zionism a form of racism. The move shocked millions, especially in the United States-- the country largely responsible for founding the UN. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, the American Ambassador to the UN, denounced this attack on Israel as an anti-Semitic assault on democracy and stood up to the Soviet-backed alliance of Communist dictatorships and Third World autocracies that supported the resolution. His eloquent stand brought him celebrity in the U.S., but ultimately shortened his tenure at the UN by alienating American allies, adversaries, and much of the foreign policy establishment--including Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. Nevertheless, Moynihan's moment was a turning point: a harbinger of a shift in American culture and politics that would culminate in the Reagan Revolution. Moynihan paved the way for a more muscular, idealistic, neoconservative foreign policy and for a new style of defiant "cowboy" diplomacy. In this book, Gil Troy argues that America's idea of itself--still torn, in the mid-'70s, between post-Vietnam and -Watergate defeatism and a growing sense of optimism--changed with Moynihan, altering both the left and the right in ways that continue to play out in the 21st century. Much of the rhetoric of this era survives in domestic foreign policy debates and the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine, suggesting that Moynihan's struggle has much to reveal about American politics and its position on the world stage.

Did America's fortieth president lead a conservative counterrevolution that left liberalism gasping for air? The answer is often "yes". This book presents a reassessment of Ronald Reagan's legacy, taking us through the 1980s and integrating the story of the Reagan presidency with stories of the decade's cultural icons and watershed moments.

The emergence of the presidential couple is one of the most contentious developments in US post-war political history. Reaction to the First Couple reflects the country's changing morality and attitudes. This work traces these shifts through ten presidential marriages, including the Clintons.

For most first ladies, their years in the White House are their sole claim to fame. For one - Hillary Rodham Clinton - that tenure was just another step in a remarkable political career. Neither a ""hit job"" nor a facile tribute, Gil Troy's lively and refreshingly nonsensational new book provides a revealing look at arguably the most polarizing first lady in history and undoubtedly the most prominent American woman of our time. Troy, named by History News Network as one of America's Top 15 Young Historians, measures Clinton's historical footprint, tracing her activities during the turbulent decade that brought her to national prominence and examining her influence as a key player in her husband's administration. Covering her attempts to overhaul health care and redefine the first lady as co-president while she tried to cope with her husband's scandals and impeachment, he recounts how Hillary's rocky road had a mixed impact on the office, even as her ambitions illuminated the role's potential. As the first feminist first lady, Hillary Clinton faced dilemmas typical of modern American women as she tried to be both a family-oriented, devoted wife and a career-focused, independent woman. Troy shows how she did her best to navigate this divide and breaks new ground in taking her seriously as a thinker. Delving into Hillary's speeches and writings, he uncovers a surprisingly more moderate, even conservative worldview. In fact, he finds some of her positions - such as her outspoken views on abortion - to be authentic expressions of a genuine Puritan/Methodist centrism rather than a mere political ploy. Offering a mix of praise and censure that elevates to a more sophisticated level debates about her controversial career and presidential aspirations, Troy's book will enlighten and intrigue Hillary's passionate critics and staunch defenders alike. It will renew discussions of where she stands in the continuum of modern first ladies - and of where history will ultimately take her. Many of the book's key themes are effectively underscored by an entertainingly narrated photo essay, with provocative images drawn from the Clinton Presidential Library.

For most first ladies, their years in the White House are their sole claim to fame. For one-Hillary Rodham Clinton - that tenure was just another step in a remarkable political career. Neither a ""hit job"" nor a facile tribute, Gil Troy's lively and refreshingly nonsensational new book provides a revealing look at arguably the most polarizing first lady in history and undoubtedly the most prominent American woman of our time.Troy, named by History News Network as one of America's Top 15 Young Historians, measures Clinton's historical footprint, tracing her activities during the turbulent decade that brought her to national prominence and examining her influence as a key player in her husband's administration.As the first feminist first lady, Hillary Clinton faced dilemmas typical of modern American women as she tried to be both a family-oriented, devoted wife and a career-focused, independent woman.Offering a mix of praise and censure that elevates to a more sophisticated level debates about her controversial career and presidential aspirations, Troy's book will enlighten and intrigue Hillary's passionate critics and staunch defenders alike.

In an era of extremist politics, Gil Troy argues, moderation and moderate leaders are needed more than ever. Challenges like managing the debt, preserving the environment, fighting terrorism, improving education—in short, protecting America today and building toward tomorrow—require the kind of consensus that can only come from leaders who seek the centre. As Troy reminds us, the election of Barack Obama in 2008 seemed to presage such a shift. Nearly four years later, however, political moderation remains as elusive as ever. Troy champions the presidencies of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and Ronald Reagan. They succeeded not because of their bold political visions, he argues, but because of their moderation. The great presidents of American history have always sought a golden mean—from George Washington, who brilliantly mediated between the competing visions of Jefferson and Hamilton; to Abraham Lincoln, who rescued the union with his principled pragmatism; to the two Roosevelts, Theodore and Franklin, who united millions of Americans with their powerful, affirmative, nationalist visions; to the bracing can-do optimism of Kennedy and Reagan. Troy explains how presidents can both hew to the center and address important political challenges. By his reckoning, the best presidents have exercised “muscular moderation.” In his afterword Troy cogently critiques President Obama’s fraught evolution from a “Magic Moderate” deeply committed to extending his election night civility as widely as possible to his gradual realisation that a much more muscular moderation would be required. Obama’s increasingly tough-minded and much less forgiving rhetoric might not immediately heal the scars from our polarised politics but might be necessary in the short run. Troy underscores in this new edition that moderation must be restored or greatness—for our presidents and our nation—will likely be denied. First time in paperback. Originally published as Leading from the Center: Why Moderates Make the Best Presidents.

The 1990s was a decade of extreme change. Shifts in culture, politics, and technology radically altered the way Americans did business, expressed themselves, and thought about their role in the world. At the center of it all was Bill Clinton, the charismatic and flawed baby boomer president, along with his polarizing but increasingly popular wife, Hillary. Although it was in many ways a Democratic Gilded Age, the 1990s was also a time of great anxiety. The Cold War was over. America was stable and prosperous. Yet Americans felt more unmoored and isolated. This was the era of glitz and grunge, when we relished living in the Republic of Everything even as we feared it might degenerate into the Republic of Nothing. Bill Clinton dominated this era, but his complex legacy has yet to be clearly defined. Historian Gil Troy examines Clinton's presidency alongside the decade's cultural changes. Taking the '90s year-by-year, Troy shows how the culture of the day shaped the Clintons even as the Clintons shaped it, offering answers to two enduring questions about Bill Clinton's legacy: How did such a talented politician leave Americans thinking he accomplished so little when he actually accomplished so much? And, to what extent was Clinton responsible for the catastrophes of the following decade, specifically 9/11 and the collapse of the housing market? Even more relevant as we head toward the 2016 election, The Age of Clinton will appeal to readers on both sides of the aisle as it chronicles the wild, transformative decade and the president at its center.