They Rule: The 1% vs. Democracy [Paperback]

They Rule reflects on key political questions raised by the Occupy movement, showing how similar questions have been raised by previous generations of radical activists: who really owns and rules the US? Does it matter that the nation is divided by stark class disparities and a concentration of wealth in the hands of a few? Along the way, this book sharpens readers' sense of who the US oligarchy are, including how their fortunes have changed over the course of US history, how they live and think and how to detect and de-cloak them. They Rule is a masterful historical and political analysis, revealing what lies beneath the surface of US society and what ordinary people can do to bring about social change.A masterful historical and political analysis, revealing what lies beneath the surface of US society. In They Rule, Street's canvas is larger than those of his earlier books, which focused on Obama and on the Tea Party. Here, he takes a step back. Rather than documenting Obama's betrayals of liberal hopes or deconstructing the American right, he asks how the political system that produced both an Obama and a Tea Party came to be during four decades of neoliberal rule. To build his case, he marshals an impressive array of social science research and Marxist-influenced analysis.
socialistworker.org

Paul Street is the most acute observer and insightful analyst of the 'Obama Phenomena.' This book gets beneath the political smoke and mirrors to reveal the pervasive rule of big money that drives the American Empire and global capitalist economy. Streets courageous truth-telling is the pre-condition for a massive radical democratic movement.
Cornel West, Union Theological Seminary

Powerful, provocative, serious--and also a good read! Paul Street moves the ball forcefully down the field in the direction of systemic change. A serious, useful, and well-written and well-researched guide to the challenges we face anlÓ+