Change They Can't Believe In
The Tea Party and Reactionary Politics in America - Updated Edition
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- $36.99
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- $36.99
Publisher Description
How the political beliefs of Tea Party supporters are connected to far-right social movements
Are Tea Party supporters merely a group of conservative citizens concerned about government spending? Or are they racists who refuse to accept Barack Obama as their president because he's not white? Change They Can’t Believe In offers an alternative argument—that the Tea Party is driven by the reemergence of a reactionary movement in American politics that is fueled by a fear that America has changed for the worse. Providing a range of original evidence and rich portraits of party sympathizers as well as activists, Christopher Parker and Matt Barreto show that the perception that America is in danger directly informs how Tea Party supporters think and act.
In a new afterword, Parker and Barreto reflect on the Tea Party’s recent initiatives, including the 2013 government shutdown, and evaluate their prospects for the 2016 election.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
University of Washington political scientists Parker (Fighting for Democracy) and Barreto (Ethnic Cues) offer a scathing analysis of the Tea Party movement, linking it in spirit to the Ku Klux Klan and the John Birch Society. Taking today's conservative populists to be dangerous and their ideas self-incriminating, the authors speculate that Tea Party supporters may perceive of social change as subversion. Based on research and interviews, they suggest racism, desire for social dominance, and economic anxiety drives the Tea Party. Right-wing nationalism and "pseudo patriotism" complete the picture. Are Tea Party populists unhappy with high taxes and intrusive government? Is their gripe about illegal immigrants or LGBT rights? Is it displacement from power? We can only be sure there's panoramic and unjust anger, they argue. Parker and Barreto contend that the Tea Party is a "reaction to Obama's presidency" and suspected efforts to wrest power and policy from "real Americans." They minimize the fiscal complaints and rapid government growth, especially Obamacare, which inflamed the movement. Although the Tea Party falls short of the radical and sinister political force this academic hit job would have its readers think it is, this study will appeal to campus progressives eager to cast this movement in the most chilling, unflattering light.
