The Courage of Our Convictions - A Manifesto for Democrats (Paperback)

A rallying cry "for Democrats who dream about governing and are eager to get their party back on track."--"CBS News""" In this powerful and provocative manifesto, former senator Gary Hart offers a call to action for Democrats to embrace moral principles and progressive leadership and not to fall back into a pattern of caution and calculation. He urges a return to the principles bequeathed to the party by its great twentieth-century presidents: Franklin D. Roosevelt's commitment to a single national community; Harry S. Truman's security through internationalism; John F. Kennedy's ideal of civic duty and service to the nation; and Lyndon B. Johnson's insistence on equality for all citizens. With the Democrats now in control of Congress, Hart speaks directly and passionately to those who seek to transform this political opportunity into a robust progressive program. As the 2008 presidential election approaches, it is the wake-up call so many Americans have been waiting for. Gary Hart represented Colorado in the U.S. Senate from 1975 to 1987. He is currently a professor at the University of Colorado, a distinguished fellow at the New America Foundation, and chairman of the American Security Project. He resides with his family in Kittredge, Colorado. In this provocative manifesto, a cri de coeur for Democrats who have grown increasingly frustrated with their party's leaders, former senator Gary Hart takes the Democrats to task for choosing caution and calculation in place of moral principles. That path, Hart says, will lead only to sorrow--for the party and for the country. "The Courage of Our Convictions" is Hart's call to action--a clear-eyed and plainspoken manifesto that urges a return to the principles bequeathed to the party by its great twentieth-century presidents: Franklin D. Roosevelt's commitment to a single national community, where no American would be left behind; Harry S. Truman's internationalism, which preserved democracy after World War II and led eventually to the defeat of communism; John F. Kennedy's ideal of civic duty and service to the nation; and Lyndon B. Johnson's insistence on equality for all our citizens. With the 2008 presidential election just over the horizon, Hart speaks directly and passionately to the many Democrats who seek a principled change of leadership in Washington. It is the wake-up call that many Americans have been waiting for. "Hart outlines a unified approach to the reconstruction of domestic politics and international relations . . . [He gives] penetrating insights, particularly regarding the tension between libertarianism and civic duty."--"Kirkus Reviews" "Hart remains a strong voice in the Democratic Party and has proven himself an effective writer. Both his voice and his writerly talent are exercised in his latest book . . . Not empty words, not shallow ideas."--Brad Hooper, "Booklist""" "The former Democratic senator from Colorado, Hart captures the frustration of many grassroots Democrats with their party's timid and rudderless response to the Bush administration. Hart pointedly mentions the advice that former Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield gave him when he first entered the Senate: 'Draw a line. Fix a point beyond which you will not go and stick to it.' In Hart's view, far too many Democratic politicians have no such line of principle. He advises them to return to the four guiding ideas that were the foundation of the party's success in the 20th century: FDR's sense that all Americans are one community, Truman's internationalism, JFK's call to service, and LBJ's dedication to social equality. Hart believes that Democrats must counter right-wing social Darwinism, imperial isolation, corruption, and the veneration of the super-rich at the expense of all others. To regain power, he writes, Democrats need to offer policies that will provide healthcare, a cleaner environment, and opportunity for all. This book will find a ready audience of those seeking an alternative to contemporary policies."--Duncan Stewart, University of Iowa Libraries, Iowa City, "Library Journal " "A former senator exhorts the Democratic Party to lead the recovery from the catastrophic Bush years by returning to its core principles . . . Hart outlines a unified approach to the reconstruction of domestic politics and international relations. He begins with a declaration of defeat in Iraq and the excoriation of the Democratic leadership that supported or condoned the invasion: if only they had listened to the few brave souls, such as himself, who in 2002 were opposing intervention. The Iraq war today is the precise analogue of the final years of the Vietnam War, just as the Bush administration's outrages against civil liberties, the author says, are akin to those of the Nixon Administration . . . The four great Democratic presidents of the 20th century epitomized the party's core principles: Franklin Roosevelt, for his defense of community; Harry S. Truman, for his belief in alliance-based internationalism; JFK's call to civic duty; and Lyndon Johnson's push for equal rights. In the 1980s, however, the Democratic Leadership Council induced the party to abandon principle in favor of centrist positions and electoral success. Hart acknowledges that the party has suffered in part because it sought to realize its tenets in outmoded ways. 'Security, ' he suggests, is the umbrella concept that can cover all those principles in the future: security of livelihood, community, the environment, energy supplies and borders. These goals cannot be achieved on just the domestic level, he says--they require the re-integration of the United States into the international community."--"Kirkus Reviews""" "Former Senator Gary Hart's role as a lifelong Democratic reformer comes to the fore in this thought-provoking manifesto, part housekeeping and part call to action, taking on the Democratic party's current identity crisis. Dismissing Democrats' hunt for a 'an exciting new candidate who will lead the Democratic party out of the wilderness, ' Hart observes that 'this search has become a substitute for thought, for purpose, for conviction . . . No politician can save a political party that does not know what it stands for.' For Hart, it's the principles and convictions of leaders past--such as FDR and JFK--that will lead the Democrats forward. In addition to putting to work 'Twentieth-Century Principles in a Twenty-First Century World, ' Hart focuses on thoughtful approaches to U.S. obligations--as opposed to detailed policy proposals--including redefining security, safeguarding liberty and protecting the environment. Hart saves some of his harshest criticism for Democratic leaders who stood silent as the country went to war. Pressing for damage control and repair--rather than 'election by default'--Hart asserts that 'in 2008, the American people will look for a leader who was willing to say, "I made a mistake . . . and I am going to ask forgiveness for my mistake from every parent who will talk to me."' Though it may prove no more than a pipe dream, Hart's stand may prove just what many confused and foundering Democrats need to read."--"Publishers Weekly"