Demagogue - The Life and Long Shadow of Senator Joe McCarthy

The definitive biography of the most dangerous demagogue in American history, based on exclusive access to his papers and recently unsealed transcripts of his closed-door Congressional hearings

In the long history of American demagogues, from Huey Long to Donald Trump, never has one man caused so much damage in such a short time as Senator Joseph McCarthy. We still use "McCarthyism" to stand for outrageous charges of guilt by association, a weapon of polarizing slander. From 1950 to 1954, McCarthy destroyed many careers and even entire lives, whipping the nation into a frenzy of paranoia, accusation, loyalty oaths, and terror. His chaotic, meteoric rise is a gripping and terrifying object lesson for us all. Yet his equally sudden fall from fame offers hope that, given the rope, most American demagogues eventually hang themselves. Only now, through best-selling author Larry Tye's look at the senator's records, can the full story be told.

About the author

Larry Tye is the New York Times bestselling author of Bobby Kennedy and Satchel, as well as Demagogue, Superman, The Father of Spin, Home Lands, and Rising from the Rails, and coauthor, with Kitty Dukakis, of Shock. Previously an award-winning reporter at the Boston Globe and a Nieman fellow at Harvard University, he now runs the Boston-based Health Coverage Fellowship. He lives on Cape Cod.

Product details

• Authors: Larry Tye, Tye Larry
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 16.08.2021
• EAN: 9780358522485
• ISBN: 978-0-358-52248-5
• No. of pages: 640
• Dimensions: 152 mm x 229 mm x 43 mm
• Weight: 644 g
• Subjects: Social sciences, law, business > Political science > Political science and political education; United States of America, USA, Biography: historical, political and military, HISTORY: 20TH CENTURY AMERICAN, HISTORY: United States / 20th Century, POLITICAL SCIENCE: General, BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY: Political, POLITICAL SCIENCE: History & Theory