Download The Conscience of a Liberal eBook

I grew up an odd child because of my obsession with politics. At the age of 6, I was watching the 1992 Presidential Debates between Clinton, Bush 41, and Perot. When I became a teenager, I identified as a liberal Democrat; however, as I grew up my environment helped changed my mindset and over the past 10 years I've identified more with the Libertarian point of view. I've voted for candidates of all major parties; however, as our political system continues to fail it becomes more evident to my mind that Liberalism has worked and can work again to bring our system back in line with what made America great during WWII and after.

Paul Krugman's book offers glimpses of the past, as he recalls the rise of FDR and his New Deal Coalition. The author also highlights the formation of a staunch conservative hatred for the New Deal that has never gone away and today embodies the heart and soul of the Republican Party. Professor Krugman does a terrific job of explaining how a fringe group took over the Republican Party and continues to win elections despite the fact that most voters disagree with most of the tenants of "movement conservatism". My favorite part of the book is the description of how wealth inequality happened in America, and what we can do to fix it. A society where the rich get richer and the poor get poorer is not one we should live in...we had that once, and it led to a Great Depression.

If you are looking for a book that describes how Liberals think of America, and you are open minded to the idea that government has a place in society beyond fighting endless wars, then I recommend you read this book. It is most definitely worth your time.

Obviously, as the title of the book implies, there is a significant partisan component here. You will find much to like if your political views align with Krugman’s, and much to disagree with if you don’t. I enjoyed this book quite a bit, so take this review with a grain of salt, I guess if you generally find yourself disagreeing with him.

Krugman is a highly engaging writer. He manages to be both breezy and serious at the same time, and someone without a modest economics background will still find the book easily accessible. Once of the strengths of this book is its methodical approach to storytelling. The first portion of the book is a historical review of ‘movement conservatism’, including some interesting demographic comments on the switch of the South from historically voting D to now voting R. At every turn, numerous quotations and data are supplied. I was surprised, for example, to learn of the verbal support given to Generalissimo Franco by William F. Buckley in National Review. I guess I have the hindsight of history uncovering Franco’s perpetrated atrocities, but yeesh. Krugman makes a compelling case that there is a correlation between income inequality and partisanship, and that it is the Republicans who have veered to the right, rather than the Democrats veering to the left that is the root of our recent divisive Congresses. Particularly instructive in his case is a chart showing the propensity to cross party boundaries to vote for bills, and the lack thereof during the ‘Gilded Age’ (pre-New Deal) and now, whereas in the post-New Deal era (approximately the 50’s through the early 70’s), there was a significant amount of crossover and bipartisanship, along with a general sense that the country was doing alright.

The latter part of the book is where he provides his vision for how we (Americans, and Liberals) could get back on track. This includes enacting universal health care and confronting income inequality. These present great rallying cries (admittedly, for *both* parties), and are one of the best parts of the book, because he’s looking forward rather than back. The history part is great to be sure, but the last few chapters are actionable, and I was glad that the book included a ‘to do’ list of sorts, that he wasn’t just lamenting a change but suggesting meaningful ways to correct problems.

Unfortunately, one weakness of this book is that it is a bit dated. Written in 2007, you catch glimpses of his thoughts on the future (now our recent past), and you wish that he would go back and update the book to take the last 6 years or so into account, particularly now that we have a new, albeit very different from what he suggests, health care law. He has somewhat done so in other books he’s written, particularly “End This Dpepression NOW!”, published in 2012. In general, they form a nice set of bookends on the recession and financial crisis of 2008-2009.

As I said at the outset, your enjoyment of this book will probably depend to a large degree on your political leanings, and that will undoubtedly color your thoughts on whether you believe him. If you’re willing to listen and give him a chance, the book will not disappoint. The historical chapters are quite good, and there’s a clear plan at the end.

Great read for those who want a new New Deal that will reinvigorate the middle class and create a society full of opportunity. Krugman does a wonderful job explaining the forces attempting to roll back the New Deal starting in the 1980s.

Good coverage of the progressive point of view from the period of time in which it was written. Things have not turned out quite as the author anticipated however. The result is that movement conservatism is still much more alive and well then he hoped. The failure of the Democratic Party to put forward their most progressive candidate in the 2016 election did not for fill the ideals he set forward in this book.

I found the The Conscience of a Liberal has broadened my attentiveness to inequality in the U.S. It was especially enlightening on the 2008 crisis and how inequality was increased as the results of the housing collapse. I don’t agree with all points in the book, as blaming the other side is shallow. But I think any reader can get a sense of arguments made especially on healthcare and how it dramatically effects inequality. Good book.

Outstanding Due to the writings of Krugman, Stiglitz and others I have gone from Conservative to something in between that and liberal. Maybe more like a Eisenhower Republican. In my view the people who take campaign money from Wall Street are destroying our Democracy and 2008 is evidence of that. I taught Securities in a law school for over thirty years. It goes to show how little attention the voters of this country pay to how they vote. I am very concerned for this country. Hassel (Bud) Hill Jr

Krugman has articulated very well the kind of country and world I wish to live in. It is a society that cares for our fellow man, regardless of color, religion, country of origin. A society that cares for and provides for the less fortunate: those in need of good health care, job opportunities, equal educational opportunities, i.e. social safety nets that meet basic needs of all our citizens.