To Save America

Last updated
To Save America: Stopping Obama's Secular-Socialist Machine
To Save America-cover.jpg
Author Newt Gingrich
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Subject Politics of the United States
Publisher Regnery Publishing
Publication date
May 17, 2010 (hardback)
January 3, 2011 (paperback)
Pages356
ISBN 978-1-59698-596-4
Preceded byPrinciples for a Successful Life: From Our Family to Yours (2009) 
Followed by A Nation Like No Other (2011) 

To Save America: Stopping Obama's Secular-Socialist Machine is a 2010 non-fiction book by former Speaker of the House and conservative activist Newt Gingrich, offering a critical view of supposed secular and socialist influences on American liberalism and the Democratic Party. It was a New York Times bestseller.

Contents

Overview

To Save America focuses on secular and socialist ideas which, Gingrich writes, are entrenched in modern American liberalism. [1] Acknowledging that his ideas "will be controversial," Gingrich coins the phrase "secular-socialist machine" to describe the current state of American liberal governance, especially the domestic policies and initiatives of President Barack Obama. According to Gingrich, the American political left can only be understood by considering the "interlocking relationship of secularism, socialism and machine politics." [2]

In the book, Gingrich explains how the "secular-socialist machine" can be seen in the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare") and alleged scandals such as ACORN voter registration fraud. He also tells how the Left sides with "big business" against small business and why "there is no liberty without religious liberty". [3]

According to Gingrich, the influence of left-leaning politicians and government regulations has left the United States in a dire position, both in terms of the economy and the ideals instilled by the Founding Fathers. [4] Some of these ideals include the importance of work ethic, private property rights and localism. Describing the current political situation, he writes that the "danger to America is greater than anything I dreamed possible after we won the Cold War and the Soviet Union disappeared in December 1991." [5]

Gingrich also spends several chapters outlining his policy prescriptions for reviving the American economy, fixing the U.S. health care system and protecting religious liberty, among other issues. He argues that the existing bureaucratic systems in Washington and state capitals are so broken and so resistant to change that they must be "replaced — not reformed — if we want to remain competitive globally in the twenty-first century." [6]

A late chapter, "Why the Tea Party Movement is Good For America," addresses the rise of the Tea Party movement, and praises the efforts of local and national groups to stand up to what he characterizes as the leftward shift in American politics. Gingrich also writes: "Remarkably, like the British in 1773, the elite media today misunderstand and mock the frustration of American tea partiers." [7] Another chapter towards the end of the book describes the importance of the Second Amendment to American freedom.

Reception

The book was received favorably by conservative-leaning reviewers and negatively by liberal-oriented ones. Writing for Human Events , Donald Lambro stated that Gingrich's book "offers a futuristic agenda for reform that speaks to the angst and anger that is driving a mounting anti-government, anti-incumbent, anti-big-spending movement in this year’s midterm elections." [1]

From a critical perspective, What's the Matter with Kansas? author Thomas Frank — who does praise Gingrich as being "ready with policy suggestions, actual steps the nation might take to translate the conservative sensibility into a ruling philosophy" — takes issue with what he calls Gingrich's "conversion to the devil theory of Barack Obama" and an exclusive focus on political corruption among Democratic politicians. [8]

Following its release, To Save America reached number two on The New York Times' hardcover non-fiction bestseller list. [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newt Gingrich</span> American politician and author (born 1943)

Newton Leroy Gingrich is an American politician and author who served as the 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U.S. representative for Georgia's 6th congressional district serving north Atlanta and nearby areas from 1979 until his resignation in 1999. In 2012, Gingrich unsuccessfully ran for the Republican nomination for president of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Regnery Publishing</span> Conservative book publisher based in Washington, D.C

Regnery Publishing is a politically conservative book publisher based in Washington, D.C. The company was founded by Henry Regnery in 1947, and is now a division of radio broadcaster Salem Media Group. It is led by President & Publisher Thomas Spence. Regnery has published books by former Republican Party chairman Haley Barbour, Ann Coulter, Sarah Palin, former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Newt Gingrich, columnist Michelle Malkin, Robert Spencer, pundit David Horowitz, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, former U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and his family, U.S. Senator Josh Hawley, and Barbara Olson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dick Armey</span> American economist and politician

Richard Keith "Dick" Armey is an American economist and politician. He was a U.S. Representative from Texas's 26th congressional district (1985–2003) and House Majority Leader (1995–2003). He was one of the engineers of the "Republican Revolution" of the 1990s, in which Republicans were elected to majorities of both houses of Congress for the first time in four decades. Armey was one of the chief authors of the Contract with America. Armey is also an author and former economics professor. After his retirement from Congress, he has worked as a consultant, advisor, and lobbyist.

Anthony David Blankley was an American political analyst who gained fame as the press secretary for Newt Gingrich, the first Republican Speaker of the House in forty years, and as a regular panelist on The McLaughlin Group. He later became an Executive Vice President with Edelman public relations in Washington, D.C. He was a Visiting Senior Fellow in National-Security Communications at the Heritage Foundation, a weekly contributor to the nationally syndicated public radio programme Left, Right & Center, the author of The West's Last Chance: Will We Win the Clash of Civilizations? and American Grit: What It Will Take to Survive and Win in the 21st Century. He served as the editorial page editor for The Washington Times from 2002–2009.

The term swiftboating is a pejorative American neologism used to describe an unfair or untrue political attack. The term is derived from the name of the organization "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" because of their widely publicized—and later discredited—campaign against 2004 U.S. presidential candidate John Kerry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Limbaugh</span> American lawyer and political commentator

David Scott Limbaugh is a conservative American political commentator and author who has also worked as a professor and as a lawyer. He is the younger brother of talk radio host Rush Limbaugh.

The Following is a table which gives a basic overview of the beliefs of a selection of the Republican presidential candidates

American Solutions for Winning the Future was a 527 organization created by former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Newt Gingrich. The group first received national attention for its 2008 effort, "Drill Here. Drill Now. Pay Less", focused on the issue of offshore drilling. The organization closed in July 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lisa Graham Keegan</span> American politician

Lisa Graham Keegan is an American education reform advocate and the author of the parenting book Simple Choices.

Steve Beren is an American political activist from Seattle, Washington.

The following is a timeline of major events leading up to the United States presidential election of 2012. The election was the 57th quadrennial United States presidential election and was held on November 6, 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Callista Gingrich</span> American businesswoman, author and diplomat

Callista Louise Gingrich is an American businesswoman, author, documentary film producer and former diplomat who served as United States Ambassador to the Holy See from 2017 to 2021. She is married to former House Speaker and 2012 Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich.

<i>Culture of Corruption</i> 2009 book by Michelle Malkin

Culture of Corruption: Obama and His Team of Tax Cheats, Crooks, and Cronies is a book written by conservative author Michelle Malkin. The book claims that the Barack Obama administration has had dozens of instances of corruption. The title is a reference to "culture of corruption", a political slogan used by Democrats to refer to events that happened during the presidency of George W. Bush.

This bibliography of Barack Obama is a list of written and published works, both books and films, about Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States.

A series of political debates were held prior to and during the 2012 Republican primaries, among candidates for the Republican presidential nomination in the national election of 2012. The first debate occurred on May 5, 2011, in Greenville, South Carolina, and was hosted by Fox News, while the last debate was held February 22, 2012, in Mesa, Arizona, and was hosted by CNN.

Newt Gingrich has declared his position on many political issues through his public comments and legislative record, including as Speaker of the House. The political initiative with which he is most widely identified was the Contract With America, which outlined an economic and social agenda designed to improve the efficiency of government while reducing its burden on the American taxpayer. Passage of the Contract helped establish Gingrich's reputation as a public intellectual. His engagement of public issues has continued through to the present, in particular as the founder of American Solutions for Winning the Future.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 United States presidential election in Iowa</span>

The 2012 United States presidential election in Iowa took place on November 6, 2012, as part of the 2012 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated. Iowa voters chose six electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote pitting incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama and his running mate, Vice President Joe Biden, against Republican challenger and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and his running mate, Congressman Paul Ryan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newt Gingrich 2012 presidential campaign</span> 2012 American presidential campaign

The 2012 presidential campaign of Newt Gingrich, former U.S. Representative from Georgia and Speaker of the House, began shortly following the 2010 midterm elections. He was politically active during the midterm elections, and helped several Tea Party-backed Republicans with his endorsements and fundraising abilities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Faith and Freedom Coalition</span> American conservative political advocacy organization

The Faith and Freedom Coalition is a conservative political advocacy 501(c)(4) non-profit organization in the United States.

<i>Understanding Trump</i> Nonfiction book by Newt Gingrich

Understanding Trump is a 2017 book about Donald Trump, the 45th president of the United States, by Newt Gingrich.

References

  1. 1 2 Donald Lambro (20 May 2010). "Gingrich Tells How to Stop Obama's 'Secular-Socialist Machine'". Human Events. Archived from the original on 22 May 2010. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  2. ↑ Gingrich, Newt; DeSantis, Joe (2011). To Save America (Paperback ed.). Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing. p.  44. ISBN   978-1-59698-596-4.
  3. ↑ Gingrich, Newt; DeSantis, Joe (2011). To Save America (Paperback ed.). Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing. p.  289. ISBN   978-1-59698-596-4.
  4. ↑ Michael Walsh (26 July 2010). "Ten Questions about 'To Save America' for Newt Gingrich". Big Journalism. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  5. ↑ Peter Ferrara (30 June 2010). "Review: To Save America". The American Spectator. Archived from the original on 3 July 2010. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  6. ↑ Gingrich, Newt; DeSantis, Joe (2011). To Save America (Paperback ed.). Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing. p.  174. ISBN   978-1-59698-596-4.
  7. ↑ Gingrich, Newt; DeSantis, Joe (2011). To Save America (Paperback ed.). Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing. p.  338. ISBN   978-1-59698-596-4.
  8. ↑ Thomas Frank (28 July 2010). "A Newt Gingrich Time Warp". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
  9. ↑ "Best Sellers". The New York Times. 20 June 2010. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.