Ideas for a book gift for conservative relative?

[imenja]

I'd like to give a Republican relative of mine a book as a gift for Christmas. He votes Republican, but I believe he has an essentially good heart. When I ask him about issues, he doesn't support hard right wing positions. I believe he votes Republican because of his family background, simply because he always has.
I'd like to find a book that critiques the Bush administration or neo-conservatism from the inside: a book by a conservative that a Republican won't immediately dismiss as left-wing propaganda. It shouldn't seem inflammatory. I basically want to introduce him to a critique in a gradual, perhaps even covert, fashion so that he will actually read the book. Any ideas?

[kaitykaity]

1. Pat Buchanan's latest.

"What went wrong with the right" I think it's called.

[imenja]

9. good possibility

I've written my sister to see what he (her husband) thinks about Buchanan. I'm still looking for other options, especially by former Reagan or Bush I officials.

[Obviousman]

2. This would be a great one:

"Eyes of the Heart" by Jean-Bertrand Aristide. It's a short book, but super powerful.

[BamaLefty]

3. Maybe Pat Buchanan?

Where the Right Went Wrong? I haven't read it though, so don't put much faith in my suggestion.

[imenja]

4. anyone read P Peterson's _Running on Empty_

Has anyone read Pete Peterson's _Running On Empty: How The Democratic and Republican Parties Are Bankrupting Our Future and What Americans Can Do About It_? Bill Moyers features Peterson periodically.

[stray cat]

15. The book is excellent and nonpartisan

Very timely given social security "reform" and tax "reform".

[CrispyQ]

5. "We The People: A Call to Take Back America" by Thom Hartman

It is written in a comic book fashion, so it's a quick read, but don't let that fool you. Tom goes into corporate personhood, fascism, the neo-cons & PNAC. It is excellent & should be required reading for everyone 10 years of age & older.


http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1882109384/qid=1102720816/sr=2-1/ref=pd_ka_b_2_1/002-4090947-5714409

Another really good read is William Rivers Pitt's book, "The Greatest Sedition is Silence."


http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0745320104/qid=1102720963/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2/002-4090947-5714409?v=glance&s=books

[Anakin Skywalker]

6. Like the other DUers here

who have replied, my first thought was "Pat Buchanan". Those who will reply later might have other suggestions.

[LostInAnomie]

7. War is a Force that Gives Us Meaning

by Chris Hedges. It completely changes anyone's view of war and aggression.

[imenja]

8. Any books by former Reagan officials? Needs to be a conservative author.

[imenja]

10. Pat Buchanan was overruled

by my sister. Any other ideas, former Reagan officials. The Pete Peterson book?

[Calmypal]

11. You're pushing politics for Christmas?

How about a digital camera, or a nice leatherbound copy of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea?

[imenja]

12. out of my price range

We give simple gifts in my family, and he already has a digital camera. I want to give him something he'd enjoy reading and would learn from. He won't want to read 20,000 Leagues, whether it's leather or gilded. I'm giving him a book on Clayton Powell, because his wife told me he would appreciate that. I thought a second book might be appropriate as well, so I asked for suggestions.
I'm sorry it doesn't meet with your approval. Perhaps I should send you the rest of my Christmas list to see if it rises to your esteemed standards.

[Calmypal]

13. Still...

I just don't think Christmas should be viewed as an opportunity to sway someone to your political views.

[hfojvt]

14. some books I got for my siblings

"Social Security: The Phony Crisis"
Dean Baker; Paperback; $9.00

"Perfectly Legal: The Covert Campaign to Rig Our Tax System to Benefit the Super Rich - and Cheat Everybody Else"
David Cay Johnston; Hardcover; $16.35

"Big Lies: The Right-Wing Propaganda Machine and How It Distorts the Truth"
Joe Conason; Hardcover; $9.98

"The Working Poor : Invisible in America"
DAVID K. SHIPLER; Hardcover; $16.50

The Great Big Book of Tomorrow: A Treasury of Cartoons"
Tom Tomorrow; Paperback; $12.57

"The Great Unraveling: Losing Our Way in the New Century"
Paul Krugman; Paperback; $10.46

"Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline of Leisure"
Juliet B. Schor; Paperback; $11.22

Not by conservatives, but will they be dismissed as propaganda or make someone think about the arguments made?

You might try a book by former conservative David Brock or "Worse than Watergate" by a former Nixon official. Take any one of those titles and Amazon will make recommendations and you can read reviews.

[imenja]

17. Thanks for your suggestions!

[stray cat]

16. I liked running on empty by Peterson

He is a republican but is equally tough on both parties for getting us in this mess.

[RUDUing2]

18. some possibilities...

Fraud: The Strategy Behind the Bush Lies and Why the Media Didn't Tell You
by Paul Waldman


Worse Than Watergate: The Secret Presidency of George W. Bush
by John W. Dean (this might be the best one..since Dean is a ultra republican crony of Nixon)

The Price of Loyalty: George W. Bush, the White House, and the Education of Paul O'Neill
by Ron Suskind

[ThorsHammer]

19. Not by a conservative, but 'House of Bush, House of Saud' is a great book

IMO this would be good for someone who is a Republican, but not a Bush fan. It goes over the historical relationship between the Bushes, neocons, and the Saudi royal family, and also has a lot of interesting stuff w/r/t 9/11

[agates]

20. How about something very subtle

A nice coffee-table pictorial type book on national parks, perhaps? If that's too subtle, you could include a card telling him you want him to enjoy nature before oil rigs block the view.

[CatholicEdHead]

21. Ed Schultz's book

His writing style is Republcianish, but he knows how to get to the moderate Republicans.

http://www.bigeddieradio.com/bookpromo.html

Your Republican friend would like that. It puts things on terms Republicans can understand in the real world.

It is not hard reading, but gets to many good points your friend should hear.

[lastliberalintexas]

22. Kevin Phillips

I'd highly recommend Wealth and Democracy, but it is pretty heavy if you're trying to convert him. It details the influence of wealth on our government and public policy and the ways in which the wealthy screw the rest of us.

You might check out other books he's written if you don't like the looks of Wealth. And Phillips is (or was?) a republican who served in the Nixon WH. He might have served with Reagan, too, I just don't remember.