Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right
Dark Money is the inside story of how 400 of the richest people in America put their money to work to bend academia, the media, churches, and the courts to their self-interest. The decline of democracy in America — and the rise of Donald Trump — did not just happen. It was meticulously organized and lavishly financed. While Democracy In Chains outlines the intellectual underpinnings and broad-sweeping game plan, Dark Money exposes the financial plan that made it all possible.
See my full review of this important book on my website HeatherHollick.com
This book is the second part a foundational trilogy of required reading for understanding how America has gotten to where it is the 2020s.
- Start with Democracy in Chains to understand the philosophical and ideological underpinnings that drove the movement.
- Move on to Dark Money to understand how a small group of billionaires created and executed a plan.
- And then read Hiding in Plain to see the breadth of the operations and the depth of the corruption.
In Their Words…
From the Amazon listing:
Why is America living in an age of profound and widening economic inequality? Why have even modest attempts to address climate change been defeated again and again? Why do hedge-fund billionaires pay a far lower tax rate than middle-class workers? In a riveting and indelible feat of reporting, Jane Mayer illuminates the history of an elite cadre of plutocrats—headed by the Kochs, the Scaifes, the Olins, and the Bradleys—who have bankrolled a systematic plan to fundamentally alter the American political system. Mayer traces a byzantine trail of billions of dollars spent by the network, revealing a staggering conglomeration of think tanks, academic institutions, media groups, courthouses, and government allies that have fallen under their sphere of influence. Drawing from hundreds of exclusive interviews, as well as extensive scrutiny of public records, private papers, and court proceedings, Mayer provides vivid portraits of the secretive figures behind the new American oligarchy and a searing look at the carefully concealed agendas steering the nation. Dark Money is an essential book for anyone who cares about the future of American democracy.