Praise for John MacArthur’s Second Front:

“A treasure-trove of evidence of official deception.”—The New York Times Book Review

“Wonderfully readable.”—The New York Times

“A brilliant piece of investigative journalism.”—The Globe and Mail

“A devastating exposé.”—The Nation

“A provocative, well-honed polemic.”—Newsweek

After the debacle of the 2000 presidential election, many Americans were asking themselves if their vote really counted anymore. Yet does the problem go even deeper than that? Is America really a democracy anymore?

In a rollicking piece of reportage based on years of reporting, Harper’s MagazinePublisher John R. MacArthur examines how the system really works—and doesn’t work—nowadays. Why is it that all the major candidates seem to be rich Ivy-Leaguers? Why is there so little difference between the Republicans and the Democrats on so many key issues? Does an outsider really have a chance?

Covering the recent candidacies of Ned Lamont and Ralph Nader, reporting on local efforts to effect change, and examining funding and influence in our electoral system in general, MacArthur presents a clarion call to restructure electoral politics.

"A blistering indictment of the political and social forces that muffle the voice of the people in our beleaguered democracy grows into an invigorating wake-up call for real change."—Shelf Awareness

John R. MacArthur, president and publisher of Harper’s Magazine, is an award-winning journalist and author of the acclaimed books The Selling of “Free Trade”: NAFTA, Washington, and the Subversion of American Democracyand Second Front: Censorship and Propaganda in the Gulf War.

"Alexis de Tocqueville is a guiding spirit for this wide-ranging text, which advances a familiar argument: that moneyed and privileged interests, rather than the needs and opinions of ordinary citizens, dominate contemporary American politics. MacArthur, president and publisher of Harper's magazine, begins by lamenting the 'lack of basic comprehension of the Constitution' and American government on the part of the political and media elite. From there, he proceeds thematically, considering the influence of the Republican and Democratic parties, the effects of social class and education, among other topics. Detours into local politics, including an extended account of a dispute over the construction of a Target store in Portsmouth, R.I., feel digressive, as do the author's occasional forays into history, in which he takes aim at targets on both sides of the political aisle from Joseph McCarthy to Woodrow Wilson and James Polk. MacArthur's book will likely inspire like-minded political progressives, despite his harsh criticism of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, but its crossover appeal may be limited. (Sept.)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

This book lays bare the malfunctions of our democracy and the solutions in a superb literary style and a convincing manner. George McGovern, Democratic candidate for President, 1972

It seems like an historic election: A woman almost won the nomination to run for President of the United states--losing to an African-American, who will run against the oldest candidate ever It's the realization of one of the core beliefs of our democracy: Anyone can be president.

Or is it? What if a close analysis showed that the candidates were, for the most part, getting their financing from the same corporations and lobbyists ... that they all went to the same schools ... that their votes were remarkably similarly on most issues ...?

In a rollicking piece of journalism based on years of reporting, John R. MacArthur, the publisher of Harper's Magazine, talks to truly independent candidates--including the first ever post-election interview of Joe Lieberman nemesis Ned Lamont--about what they were up against. He gives the most detailed breakdown yet of campaign financing sources. He analyzes the parameters of the two party system, what the Constitution has to say about that, and how the media treats independent politicians. And he also discusses how all this influences issues of local democracy.

It's an edgy, fascinating look at the system that's a must-read to understand whether the most historic election in American history is really going to be about change ... or not.

John R. MacArthur, president and publisher of Harper's Magazine, is an award-winning journalist and author. He is the author of two books: The Selling of "Free Trade": NAFTA, Washington, and the Subversion of American Democracy; and Second Front: Censorship and Propaganda in the Gulf War.