Current Affairs Audiobooks | Politics

American Coup: How a Terrified Government Is Destroying the Constitution

A stunning exploration of the subtle erosion of freedom in an age of concocted fear and de facto military authority. When we think of a military coup, the first image that comes to mind is a general, standing at a podium with a flag behind him, declaring the deposing of elected leaders and the institution of martial law. Think again. In AMERICAN COUP, William Arkin reveals the desk-bound takeover of the highest reaches of government by a coterie of "grey men" of the national security establishment. Operating between the lines of the Constitution this powerful and unelected group fights to save the nation from "terror" and weapons of mass destruction while at the same time modifying and undermining the very essence of the country. Many books are written about secrecy, surveillance, and government law-breaking; none so powerfully expose the truth of everyday life in this state of war.

William M. Arkin (Author), William M. Arkin (Narrator)

Audiobook

Keep It Pithy

From the bestselling author of Killing Lincoln and host of Fox News' top show The O'Reilly Factor, the best of Bill O'Reilly's provocative writing-reflecting his ideas, wisdom, and core values Bill O'Reilly is one of the most recognized and talked-about journalists of our time. With an unparalleled track record as an author and with the #1-rated Fox News show, The O'Reilly Factor, O'Reilly has become a veritable institution of political insight and keen advice. In Keep It Pithy, O'Reilly offers a classic collection of the most memorable writings from his bestselling books, and looks back at how his opinions and ideas have been proven right or wrong by the passage of time. With his trademark candor and no-nonsense approach, each chapter focuses on a core theme as it gathers O'Reilly's thoughts on the most compelling issues of our time and provides readers an illuminating guide to the American cultural landscape. A spirited and personal book, Keep It Pithy is the perfect addition to an O'Reilly fan's library, or the best introduction for the few left uninitiated.

Bill O'Reilly (Author), Bill O'Reilly, Dan Woren (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Democracy Project: A History, A Crisis, A Movement

A bold rethinking of the most powerful political idea in the world democracy and the story of how radical democracy can yet transform America Democracy has been the American religion since before the Revolution from New England town halls to the multicultural democracy of Atlantic pirate ships. But can our current political system, one that seems responsive only to the wealthiest among us and leaves most Americans feeling disengaged, voiceless, and disenfranchised, really be called democratic? And if the tools of our democracy are not working to solve the rising crises we face, how can we average citizens make change happen? David Graeber, one of the most influential scholars and activists of his generation, takes readers on a journey through the idea of democracy, provocatively reorienting our understanding of pivotal historical moments, and extracts their lessons for today from the birth of Athenian democracy and the founding of the United States of America to the global revolutions of the twentieth century and the rise of a new generation of activists. Underlying it all is a bracing argument that in the face of increasingly concentrated wealth and power in this country, a reenergized, reconceived democracy one based on consensus, equality, and broad participation can yet provide us with the just, free, and fair society we want. The Democracy Project tells the story of the resilience of the democratic spirit and the adaptability of the democratic idea. It offers a fresh take on vital history and an impassioned argument that radical democracy is, more than ever, our best hope.Praise for David Graeber's Debt A sprawling, erudite, provocative work. Drake Bennett, Bloomberg Businessweek Written in a brash, engaging style, the book is also a philosophical inquiry into the nature of debt where it came from and how it evolved. The New York Times Book Review Fresh . . . fascinating . . . thought-provoking [and] exceedingly timely. Financial Times The book is more readable and entertaining than I can indicate. . . . Graeber is a scholarly researcher, an activist and a public intellectual. His field is the whole history of social and economic transactions. Peter Carey, The Observer One of the year's most influential books. Graeber situates the emergence of credit within the rise of class society, the destruction of societies based on 'webs of mutual commitment' and the constantly implied threat of physical violence that lies behind all social relations based on money. Paul Mason, The Guardian Part anthropological history and part provocative political argument, it's a useful corrective to what passes for contemporary conversation about debt and the economy. Jesse Singal, The Boston Globe Terrific . . . In the best anthropological tradition, he helps us reset our everyday ideas by exploring history and other civilizations, then boomeranging back to render our own world strange, and more open to change. Raj Patel, The Globe and Mail

David Graeber (Author), Grover Gardner (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Ultimate Obama Survival Guide: How to Survive, Thrive, and Prosper during Obamageddon

Build your wealth, protect your faith and family, secure your freedom. Don't just survive Obama-learn how to outsmart his big-government socialist system and thrive! Wayne Allyn Root is no stranger to risks and challenges. From his career as a businessman and television host to his emergence as a mega-pundit on virtually every major news outlet, Root has learned how to turn setbacks into success and adversity into prosperity. And you're going to need his expertise as you and your family tackle the biggest challenge facing Americans today: Barack Obama's second term in the White House. First, Root delivers the cold hard facts: how Obama is working to steal your liberty, your hard-earned cash, and your opportunities, and where he has already got a leg up on his redistributionist, anti-personal-freedom agenda while no one was looking. Then he takes you on a tour of the practical, real-life ways you can fight back, not just in the ballot box but in your bank account, on your tax forms, at your church, in your home, in your schools, and at your doctor's office. He's not just talking about political activism; he's giving you the step-by-step instructions you need to protect yourself and your family right now from the Obama invasion of every aspect of your life. The Ultimate Obama Survival Guide isn't just about survival. It's about how to thrive despite all odds, no matter what Obama throws at us next. "At a time of suffocating political correctness and damaging crackpot economic theories, particularly at the Federal Reserve, Wayne Allyn Root comes out with both guns blazing! He 'gets it' on preserving freedom and enhancing the opportunity to better oneself and to get ahead."-Steve Forbes

Wayne Allyn Root (Author), Tom Weiner (Narrator)

Audiobook

Immigration Wars: Forging an American Solution

From the former Republican governor of Florida and a leading constitutional litigator comes a timely and provocative look at one of the most divisive issues facing the nation today: immigration. There's no public policy issue that divides Americans more stridently than immigration. The principal arguments have remained consistent for more than two centuries, without a common ground ever being reached. Now, in Immigration Wars, Jeb Bush and leading constitutional litigator Clint Bolick deliver a comprehensive solution based on two core principles: immigration is vital to America's future, fueling its growth, vibrancy, and creativity; but any enduring solution must follow America's laws. We are, of course, a nation of immigrants. More than any other country, our national identity is based on a set of ideals that are enriched and reinvigorated by immigrants, most of whom attach themselves more fervently to core American values. But over the past several decades, a huge percentage of immigrants have entered and remained in the country illegally. In order to effectively deal with this problem, we must first overhaul our badly broken immigration process. An important and necessary work, Immigration Wars offers a compassionate view of immigration and realistic measures for reforming policy-without the divisive rhetoric-and a roadmap for our country's future.

Clint Bolick, Jeb Bush (Author), Skipp Sudduth (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Payoff: Why Wall Street Always Wins

Beginning in January 2009, The Payoff lays bare Washington's culture of power and plutocracy. It's the story of the twenty-month struggle by Senator Ted Kaufman and Jeff Connaughton, his chief of staff, to hold Wall Street executives accountable for securities fraud, stop stock manipulation by high-frequency traders, and break up too-big-to-fail megabanks. This book takes us inside their dogged crusade against institutional inertia and industry influence as they encounter an outright reluctance by the Obama administration, the Justice Department, and the Securities and Exchange Commission to treat Wall Street crimes with the gravity they deserve. On financial reforms, Connaughton criticizes Democrats for relying on the very Wall Street technocrats who had failed to prevent the crisis and Republicans for staunchly opposing real reforms, primarily to enjoy a golden opportunity to siphon fundraising dollars from the Wall Street executives who had raised millions to elect Barack Obama president. Connaughton, a former lawyer in the Clinton White House, illuminates the pivotal moments and key decisions in the fight for financial reform that have gone largely unreported. His arch, nonpartisan account chronicles the reasons why Wall Street's worst offenses were left unpunished—and why it's likely that the 2008 debacle will happen again.

Jeff Connaughton (Author), Jeff Connaughton (Narrator)

Audiobook

Spin Masters: How the Media Ignored the Real News and Helped Reelect Barack Obama

The biggest story of the election was how the media ignored the biggest story of the election. Amid all the breathless coverage of a nonexistent war on women, there was little or no coverage of Obama's war on the economy-how, for instance, part-time work is replacing full-time work, how low-wage jobs are replacing high-wage ones, how for Americans between the ages of twenty-five and fifty-four there are fewer jobs today than there were when the recession officially ended in 2009, and fewer, in fact, than at any time since mid-1997. The downsizing of the American economy wasn't the only story the media missed-or suppressed-there was also the unraveling of Obama's foreign policy and the deadly scandals at home (Fast and Furious) and abroad (the terrorist attack that killed the American ambassador at Benghazi). But instead of serious, substantive journalism, the media reported ad nauseam on trifles (Big Bird), Republican-baiting hysteria (how everything the Republicans said was allegedly "racial code"), and distortions of Romney's remarks (such as the "47 percent" comment). The media dropped the ball in covering the 2012 election, says David Freddoso, editorial page editor of the Washington Examiner, and in doing so, the media failed in their responsibility to keep politicians honest and the public well-informed. Freddoso, a New York Times bestselling author and former congressional reporter for National Review, fills this volume not only with outrageous examples of media bias but also with dozens of real stories that genuinely inquisitive reporters should have relished but that the overwhelmingly liberal press didn't even bother to cover. Full of the news you didn't hear about in 2012, David Freddoso's Spin Masters: How the Media Ignored the Real News and Helped Reelect Barack Obama will be the most provocative and accurate take of just how Barack Obama managed to get reelected amid the worst economic times since at least the 1970s-and how the media helped him do it. "Spin Masters shows just how far to the left the news media have lurched. There are other ways to study media bias, but Freddoso's book is a lot more fun than poring through the first forty-two Gail Collins columns in the New York Times about Mitt Romney driving with a dog on the roof of his car. (The dog liked it!)"-Ann Coulter, #1 New York Times bestselling author

David Freddoso (Author), David Cochran Heath (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Payoff: Why Wall Street Always Wins

Beginning in January 2009, The Payoff lays bare Washington's culture of power and plutocracy. It's the story of the twenty-month struggle by Senator Ted Kaufman and Jeff Connaughton, his chief of staff, to hold Wall Street executives accountable for securities fraud, stop stock manipulation by high-frequency traders, and break up too-big-to-fail megabanks. This book takes us inside their dogged crusade against institutional inertia and industry influence as they encounter an outright reluctance by the Obama administration, the Justice Department, and the Securities and Exchange Commission to treat Wall Street crimes with the gravity they deserve. On financial reforms, Connaughton criticizes Democrats for relying on the very Wall Street technocrats who had failed to prevent the crisis and Republicans for staunchly opposing real reforms, primarily to enjoy a golden opportunity to siphon fundraising dollars from the Wall Street executives who had raised millions to elect Barack Obama president. Connaughton, a former lawyer in the Clinton White House, illuminates the pivotal moments and key decisions in the fight for financial reform that have gone largely unreported. His arch, nonpartisan account chronicles the reasons why Wall Street's worst offenses were left unpunished-and why it's likely that the 2008 debacle will happen again. "Jeff Connaughton has a new job: truth teller. The Payoff: Why Wall Street Always Wins is a memoir and more...A must read if you're interested in the corrupting influence of lobbyists, the revolving door between Wall Street and those that govern and regulate the financial services industry, and how huge, and ultimately untraceable, amounts of money grease the wheels of government at every step...Full of revealing quotes and anecdotes that describe a messy, self-serving, and sometimes ruthless political process."-Forbes online

Jeff Connaughton (Author), Jeff Connaughton (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Outpost: An Untold Story of American Valor

At 6:00 a.m. on the morning of October 3, 2009, Combat Outpost Keating was viciously attacked by Taliban insurgents. The 53 U.S. troops, having been stationed at the bottom of three steep mountains, were severely outmanned by nearly 400 Taliban fighters. Though the Americans ultimately prevailed, their casualties made it one of the war's deadliest battles for U.S. forces. And after more than three years in that dangerous and vulnerable valley a mere 14 miles from the Pakistan border, the U.S. abandoned and bombed the camp. A Pentagon investigation later concluded that there was no reason for Outpost Keating to have been there in the first place. THE OUTPOST is a tour de force of investigative journalism. Jake Tapper exposes the origins of this tragic and confounding story, exploring the history of the camp and detailing the stories of soldiers heroic and doomed, shadowed by the recklessness of their commanders in Washington, D.C. and a war built on constantly shifting sands.

Jake Tapper (Author), Rob Shapiro (Narrator)

Audiobook

Live From Downing Street

The relationship between those who wield power and those whose job it is to tell us what they are doing has always been fraught with tension. Politicians now expect to be on camera and facing aggressive questions from the moment they open their front door to the moment they return home at night. Everything they say and do is instantly broadcast and dissected on 24-hour news channels, blogs and Twitter. It was not always this way. Live from Downing Street takes us on an absorbing journey through the hard-fought battles for the right to tell the public about the decisions taken on their behalf. Parliament once imprisoned those who dared to report what MPs had said. Broadcasters used to be banned by law from debating anything newsworthy and even from covering elections. Since that censorship ended, the two sides have clashed repeatedly. We follow the fluctuations of the power struggle from Walpole to modern times, dwelling in fascinating detail on those who fought back - Churchill, Wilson, Thatcher and Blair. At the same time we learn of the emergence of the equally charismatic key players from radio and television: the Dimblebys, Day, Frost, Walden, Paxman and Humphrys. Nick Robinson provides a colourful and personal examination of what life is like as the BBC's Political Editor - a role described in a report for the White House as 'the most important job in British political journalism'. Peppered with informative but witty anecdotes, his account reveals his own considered view of the controversial issue of impartial reporting. Live from Downing Street is a gripping story written by someone uniquely placed to add his own perceptive insights and observations.

Nick Robinson (Author), Simon Shepherd (Narrator)

Audiobook

Interventions: A Life in War and Peace

A candid memoir of global statecraft during one of the most consequential eras of recent history INTERVENTIONS. is the inside story of a world at the brink. After forty years of service in the United Nations, former Secretary-General Kofi Annan shares his unique perspective of the terrorist attacks of September 11; the American invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan; the wars among Israel, Hezbollah, and Lebanon; the humanitarian tragedies of Somalia, Rwanda, and Bosnia; and the geopolitical transformations following the Cold War. With eloquence and unprecedented candor, Annan finally reveals his unique role and unparalleled perspective on decades of global politics. The first sub-Saharan African national to hold the position of secretary-general, Annan has led an incredible life, an amazing story in its own right. Annan's idealism and personal politics were forged in the Ghana independence movements of his adolescence, when all of Africa seemed to be waking from centuries of imperial slumber. Schooled in Minnesota, Massachusetts, and Europe, Annan ultimately joined the United Nations in Geneva as the lowest level civil servant in the still young organization. Yet Annan rose rapidly through the ranks, and by the end of the Cold War he was prominently placed in the rapidly changing department of peacekeeping. As Annan shows the successes of the United Nations around the world, he also reveals the organization's missed opportunities and ongoing challenges-thwarted actions in the Rwanda genocide, continuing violence between Israelis and Palestinians, the endurance of endemic poverty, and much else. Yet Annan's great strength in this book is his ability to embed these tragedies within the context of global politics; demonstrating how, time and again, the nations of the world have retreated from the UN's radical mandate. Ultimately, Annan shows readers a world in which solutions are always available, in which all we lack is the will and courage to see them through. A personal biography of global statecraft, Annan's INTERVENTIONS is as much a memoir as it is a guide to world order-past, present, and future.

Kofi Annan, Kofie Annan, Nader Mousavizadeh (Author), Dominic Hoffman (Narrator)

Audiobook

Future Perfect: The Case For Progress In A Networked Age

Combining the deft social analysis of Where Good Ideas Come From with the optimistic arguments of Everything Bad Is Good For You, New York Times bestselling author Steven Johnson's Future Perfect makes the case that a new model of political change is on the rise, transforming everything from local governments to classrooms, from protest movements to health care. Johnson paints a compelling portrait of this new political worldview -- influenced by the success and interconnectedness of the Internet, but not dependent on high-tech solutions -- that breaks with the conventional categories of liberal or conservative thinking. With his acclaimed gift for multi-disciplinary storytelling and big ideas, Johnson explores this new vision of progress through a series of fascinating narratives: from the "miracle on the Hudson" to the planning of the French railway system; from the battle against malnutrition in Vietnam to a mysterious outbreak of strange smells in downtown Manhattan; from underground music video artists to the invention of the Internet itself. At a time when the conventional wisdom holds that the political system is hopelessly gridlocked with old ideas, Future Perfect makes the timely and inspiring case that progress is still possible, and that new solutions are on the rise. This is a hopeful, affirmative outlook for the future, from one of the most brilliant and inspiring visionaries of contemporary culture.

Steven Johnson (Author), Samuel Cohen (Narrator)

Audiobook

Current Affairs Audiobooks in Politics