Jackson Lears is the Board of Governors Distinguished Professor of History at Rutgers University and editor-in-chief of Raritan. His most recent books are Animal Spirits: The American Pursuit of Vitality from Camp Meeting to Wall Street and Conjurors, Cranks, Provincials and Antediluvians.
In certain precincts of American political culture, the mere mention of the name Ralph Nader still provokes scowls. Many Democrats remain convinced that Nader’s presidential campaign in 2000 cost Al Gore the White House and ushered in the calamitous reign of George W. Bush. The obsession with Nader is at first puzzling: blame for Bush’s ascendancy can be traced to many other...
Ronald Reagan, as Jackson Lears wrote recently in the LRB, was a ‘telegenic demagogue’ whose ‘emotional appeal was built on white people’s racism’. His presidency left the United States a far...
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