Overview

"The fate of American democracy now hinges on the Democrats' ability to defeat the Republicans for the foreseeable future. But for the Democrats to win consistently, they must reestablish their credentials as fearless leaders, tough fighters, and fierce patriots. Comeback delivers a bold new take on democracy's crisis. Many liberals think that escalating economic anxieties and cultural backlash drove voters to Trump. But a crush of data shows this thinking to be deeply flawed. It also strikes working-class voters as condescending and repellent. And while the Democrats stick to ""kitchen table"" issues and showing how much they care, voters care more about strength and commitment to principle than prescription drug prices. Politics is a dominance game and a contest to capture the flag. Politicians who seem to be the strongest leaders and most passionate patriots hold the advantage. The Republicans get it. The Democrats don't. Republicans have a high-dominance political style. They take risks, savor conflict, and use provocative language. Democrats have a low-dominance style. They're risk-averse, afraid to engage on cultural issues-and more than a little boring. Republicans hammer away at their patriotism, even as they betray the nation and shred American values. Democrats are loyal to American values but have grown squeamish about patriotism and have no national story. Ordinary people often don't recognize themselves in the stories liberal politicians tell about them, while the authoritarians speak a language of dominance and national greatness that connects. The Democrats need a new approach to messaging. Comeback spells it out-and provides a roadmap for trouncing Trumpism."

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9781953943538

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Reviews

"Steven Fish argues convincingly that what liberals need now is strong leadership, with buoyant, vigorous, self-confident messaging, to combat bullying authoritarianism, 'recapture the flag' for democracy, and excite people with a positive moral vision of change . . . This is a rallying cry for Democrats to reestablish 'their reputations for superior strength and patriotism.'""-Larry Diamond, Mosbacher Senior Fellow of Global Democracy at the Freeman Spogli Institute, Stanford University, and author of The Spirit of Democracy ""As authoritarianism threatens to take hold in the United States, many Americans have bought into narratives of inevitable decline and found themselves overtaken by despair. Steve Fish is having none of it. Comeback is the work of a veteran scholar and happy warrior: Fish not only corrects the record but lays out a battle plan for saving democracy.""-Tom Nichols, Staff writer at The Atlantic and author of The Death of Expertise ""For all those who want to truly understand the Trump phenomenon, Steven Fish's Comeback is revelatory. For those who long to defeat Trump and Trumpism once and for all, Comeback is vital reading.""-Mark Danner, author of Spiral: Trapped in the Forever War ""From an eminent scholar of democracy and dictatorship comes this crucial, cogent, and impassioned plea for rescuing American democracy. Comeback gave me hope that democracy in the United States could survive-if enough people read it and take Fish's critically important findings to heart.""-Valerie Sperling, Professor of Political Science, Clark University, and coauthor of Courting Gender Justice ""Fish lays waste to a string of narratives that lead to electoral dead ends and provides a script for a campaign to beat back-and dominate-Trump and his miserable vision. If you're a democratic patriot, or a patriotic Democrat, you'll be nodding along as you read. This book could help the right side win.""-John Carey, Professor of Government, Dartmouth College, founder of Bright Line Watch, and coauthor of Campus Diversity: The Hidden Consensus"

"""In this powerful and provocative book, democracy scholar Steven Fish argues convincingly that what liberals need now is strong leadership, with buoyant, vigorous, self-confident messaging, to combat bullying authoritarianism, 'recapture the flag' for democracy, and excite people with a positive moral vision of change. As his analysis of economic data, public opinion surveys, and social psychological research makes clear, elections are also an emotional contest, a struggle over values and compelling national narratives. This is a rallying cry for Democrats to reestablish 'their reputations for superior strength and patriotism.'""-Larry Diamond, Mosbacher Senior Fellow of Global Democracy at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University, Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, and author of The Spirit of Democracy ""As authoritarianism threatens to take hold in the United States, many Americans have bought into narratives of inevitable decline and found themselves overtaken by despair. Steve Fish is having none of it. Comeback is the work of a veteran scholar and happy warrior: Fish not only corrects the record but lays out a battle plan for saving democracy. This book is essential for anyone who wants to be part of that fight.""-Tom Nichols, staff writer at The Atlantic and author of The Death of Expertise and Our Own Worst Enemy ""For all those who want to truly understand the Trump phenomenon, Steven Fish's Comeback is revelatory. For those who long to defeat Trump and Trumpism once and for all, Comeback is vital reading. An essential book on the reality of contemporary politics.""-Mark Danner, author of Spiral: Trapped in the Forever War ""Comeback is a remarkable achievement. Fish mobilizes decades of experience as a leading specialist on democracy and authoritarianism to construct a paradigm-busting explanation for Trump's rise. He offers novel, promising, and feasible prescriptions for defeating Trumpism, including developing a 'national-democratic narrative' that can widen the appeal for justice and counteract bigoted nativism. This is a must-read book for politicians, scholars, journalists, and everyone who supports equality and democracy.""-Marc M. Howard, Professor of Government and Law and Director of the Prisons and Justice Initiative, Georgetown University, Founder and President of the Frederick Douglass Project for Justice, and author of Unusually Cruel: Prisons, Punishment, and the Real American Exceptionalism ""Steve Fish presents an original strategy for defeating America's slide toward authoritarian populism, backed by an avalanche of data and incisive analyses of speeches and statements that illustrate how liberalluminaries have defended democracy throughout American history. His causal analysis and policy prescriptions are utterly convincing. Comeback is an important, brilliant, and thrilling read.""-George W. Breslauer, former Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost, University of California, Berkeley, and author of The Rise and Demise of World Communism"

Author Information

M. Steven Fish is a comparative political scientist at the University of California, Berkeley, who specializes in democracy and authoritarianism, religion and politics, and constitutional systems and national legislatures. He writes and comments extensively on international affairs and the rising challenges to democracy in the United States and around the world. He appears on BBC, CNN, and other major networks, and has published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The American Interest, The Daily Beast, Slate, and Foreign Policy. Laila M. Aghaie is an education consultant specializing in the development of community forums, speaker events, writing programs, and arts curricula in collaboration with school districts, government agencies, and community-based organizations.

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