The Ministry Of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past

(Hardback)

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A searing, vital investigation of the Republican Partys dangerous campaign to rewrite history in real time, from the Emmy Award-winningRachel Maddow Showproducer and bestselling author ofThe Impostors.

There is nobody...who has more influence on the way I think about politics than Steve Benen.Rachel Maddow

For as long as historical records have existed, authoritarian regimes have tried to rewrite history to suit their purposes, using their dictatorial powers to create myths, spread propaganda, justify decisions, erase opponents, and even dispose of crimes.

Today, as Americas Republican Party becomes increasingly radicalized, its not surprising to see the GOP read from a similarly despotic script. Indeed, the party is taking dangerous, aggressive steps to rewrite historyand not just from generations past. Unable to put a positive spin on Trump-era scandals and fiascos, GOP voices and their allies have grown determined to rewrite the stories of the last few yearsfrom the 2020 election results and the horror of January 6^th to their own legislative recordtreating the recent past as an enemy to be overpowered, crushed, and conquered. The consequences for our future, in turn, are dramatic.

Extraordinarily timely and undeniably important, Steve Benens new book tells the staggering chronicle of the Republican partys unsettling attempts at historical revisionism. It reveals not only how dependent they have grown on the tactic, but also how dangerous the consequences are if we allow the party to continue. The stakes, Benen argues, couldnt be higher: the future of democracy hinges on both our accurate understanding of events and the end of alternative narratives that challenge reality.

Reviews

"There is nobody who is writing in an episodic, daily way, in any medium, anywhere in the world, who has more influence on the way I think about politics than Steve Benen." -- Rachel Maddow

"A fierce takedown of right-wing mendacity committed in the service of a bigger lie." -- Kirkus Reviews

Author Bio

STEVE BENEN is a producer of The Rachel Maddow Show and the editor of The MaddowBlog. An MSNBC contributor, Benen's articles and op-eds have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Monthly, The American Prospect, Salon.com, and other publications. For his work on TRMS, he has been nominated for five Emmy Awards, winning twice. He lives in Vermont.