Focus on Politics on October 4th

The edited, annotated diary of President Jimmy Carter - filled with insights into his presidency, his relationships with friends and foes, and his lasting impact on issues that still preoccupy America and the world.

Each day during his presidency, Jimmy Carter made several entries in a private diary, recording his thoughts, impressions, delights, and frustrations. He offered unvarnished assessments of cabinet members, congressmen, and foreign leaders; he narrated the progress of secret negotiations such as those that led to the Camp David Accords. When his four-year term came to an end in early 1981, the diary amounted to more than five thousand pages. But this extraordinary document has never been made public - until now.By carefully selecting the most illuminating and relevant entries, Carter has provided us with an astonishingly intimate view of his presidency. Day by day, we see his forceful advocacy for nuclear containment, sustainable energy, human rights, and peace in the Middle East. We witness his interactions with such complex personalities as Ted Kennedy, Henry Kissinger, Joe Biden, Anwar Sadat, and Menachem Begin. We get the inside story of his so-called "malaise speech," his bruising battle for the 1980 Democratic nomination, and the Iranian hostage crisis. Remarkably, we also get Carter's retrospective comments on these topics and more: thirty years after the fact, he has annotated the diary with his candid reflections on the people and events that shaped his presidency, and on the many lessons learned.

Carter is now widely seen as one of the truly wise men of our time. Offering an unprecedented look at both the man and his tenure, this fascinating book will stand as a unique contribution to the history of the American presidency.

For almost four decades, from his role in the 1972 George McGovern campaign to his years as a visionary senator, from his leadership on national security issues before and after 9/11 to his role in international environmental issues, Gary Hart has been one of America's great public servants. Through times of triumph and disappointment, Hart's dedication to the ideals of the founding fathers, particularly Thomas Jefferson, and his devotion to the American Republic never wavered. In this insightful, humble, and often humorous account of his political and public life, Hart shares the lessons he has learned in the last forty years, imparting to future generations the significance of public service and the role of America in the world. The Thunder and the Sunshine is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand where we have been as a country, and where we are heading in the twenty-first century.

Gary Hart represented the state of Colorado in the US Senate from 1975 until 1987. He is currently scholar in residence at the University of Colorado, co-chair of the US-Russia Commission, and vice chair of the Homeland Security Advisory Council. He was co-chair of the US Commission on National Security for the 21st Century, which predicted the terrorist attacks on America and proposed a sweeping overhaul of US national security structures and policies for the post-Cold War century and the age of terrorism.

Harold Ford Jr. has long distinguished himself as a charismatic, results-oriented politician with fresh ideas. His career began at age 26 after he won his father's Congressional seat, serving his Tennessee district for ten years. He stepped into the national spotlight with his electric keynote at the 2000 Democratic National Convention, and in 2006 his reputation was further shaped during the closest Senate race in Tennessee's history, which he lost. Ford feels passionately that our country's best days are ahead, and in More Davids Than Goliaths, he presents his mission statement for America.

Reflecting on what he's learned from his extended political family, the slings and arrows of the campaign trail, and those across our nation who inspire him, More Davids Than Goliaths explains Ford's conviction, At its best, leadership in government can solve, inspire, and heal. Along the way, Ford reminds us that in America, there are more Davids than Goliaths, more solutions than problems, more that unites us than divides us.

It's not an exaggeration to say that middle-class Americans are an endangered species and that the American Dream of a secure, comfortable standard of living has become as outdated as an Edsel with an eight-track player. That the United States of America is in danger of becoming a third world nation.

The evidence is all around us:

Our industrial base is vanishing, taking with it the kind of jobs that have formed the backbone of our economy for more than a century; our education system is in shambles, making it harder for tomorrow's workforce to acquire the information and training it needs to land good twenty-first century jobs; our infrastructure - our roads, our bridges, our sewage and water, our transportation and electrical systems - is crumbling; our economic system has been reduced to recurring episodes of Corporations Gone Wild; our political system is broken, in thrall to a small financial elite using the power of the checkbook to control both parties.

And America's middle class, the driver of so much of our economic success and political stability, is rapidly disappearing, forcing us to confront the fear that we are slipping as a nation - that our children and grandchildren will enjoy fewer opportunities and face a lower standard of living than we did.

It's the dark flipside of the American Dream - an American Nightmare of our own making.

Arianna Huffington, who, with the must-read Huffington Post, has her finger on the pulse of America, unflinchingly tracks the gradual demise of America as an industrial, political, and economic leader. In the vein of her fiery bestseller Pigs at the Trough, Third World America points fingers, names names, and details who's killing the American Dream.

Finally, calling on the can-do attitude that is part of America's DNA, Huffington shows precisely what we need to do to stop our freefall and keep America from turning into a third world nation.

Third World America is a must-read for anyone disturbed by our country's steady descent from 20th century superpower to backwater banana republic.