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Table of Contents
About The Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
On the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, law professor, legal analyst, and bestselling author of The Indispensable Right Jonathan Turley explores how the unique origins of American democracy set it apart from other revolutions, whether it can survive and thrive in the 21st century, and how the unfinished story of the revolution will play out in a rapidly changing world.
This is a book about revolutions. Most countries are the progeny of revolution. At the birth of this nation, the Founding Fathers faced the quintessential question of self-governance: how do you keep democracy from devolving into violent anarchy or brutal despotism? Drawing on little-known facts from the founding, Jonathan Turley reveals how the United States escaped the cycles of violence and instability that plagued other democratic movements, from ancient Athens to 19th-century France.
As the nation approaches a new era marked by artificial intelligence, robotics, and profound economic shifts, America must again withstand the pressure of radical forces that seek to curtail our natural liberties under the guise of popular reform. In this crisis of faith, many politicians and pundits are questioning the very principles of American democracy, and some law professors are even calling for scrapping the Constitution.
Synthesizing sources from history to philosophy to the arts, Turley offers a hopeful account of how the lessons of the past can guide us through today’s “crisis of faith” in democracy and see us into the future. He notes: “From redcoats to robots, our challenges have changed. Yet, we have remained. Our greatest danger is not forgetting the history detailed in this book, but forgetting who we were in that history.”
On the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, law professor, legal analyst, and bestselling author of The Indispensable Right Jonathan Turley explores how the unique origins of American democracy set it apart from other revolutions, whether it can survive and thrive in the 21st century, and how the unfinished story of the revolution will play out in a rapidly changing world.
This is a book about revolutions. Most countries are the progeny of revolution. At the birth of this nation, the Founding Fathers faced the quintessential question of self-governance: how do you keep democracy from devolving into violent anarchy or brutal despotism? Drawing on little-known facts from the founding, Jonathan Turley reveals how the United States escaped the cycles of violence and instability that plagued other democratic movements, from ancient Athens to 19th-century France.
As the nation approaches a new era marked by artificial intelligence, robotics, and profound economic shifts, America must again withstand the pressure of radical forces that seek to curtail our natural liberties under the guise of popular reform. In this crisis of faith, many politicians and pundits are questioning the very principles of American democracy, and some law professors are even calling for scrapping the Constitution.
Synthesizing sources from history to philosophy to the arts, Turley offers a hopeful account of how the lessons of the past can guide us through today’s “crisis of faith” in democracy and see us into the future. He notes: “From redcoats to robots, our challenges have changed. Yet, we have remained. Our greatest danger is not forgetting the history detailed in this book, but forgetting who we were in that history.”
About The Author
Jonathan Turley
Jonathan Turley is a law professor, columnist, television analyst, and litigator. Since 1998, he has held the Shapiro Chair for Public Interest Law at George Washington University Law School. He has served as counsel in some of the most notable cases in the last two decades, including representing members of Congress, judges, whistleblowers, five former Attorney Generals, celebrities, accused spies and terrorists, journalists, protesters, and the workers at the secret facility Area 51. Turley has testified before Congress over one hundred times, including during the impeachments of Presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump. He was also lead counsel in the last judicial impeachment in US history. He has written for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and USA TODAY. Called the “dean of legal analysts” by The Washington Post, Turley has worked as a legal analyst for CBS, NBC, BBC, and Fox. In a study by Judge Richard Posner, Turley was found to be thirty-eighth in the top 100 most cited “public intellectuals” (and the second most cited law professor).
Product Details
- Publisher: Simon & Schuster (February 3, 2026)
- Length: 448 pages
- ISBN13: 9781668205044
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Raves and Reviews
“A masterpiece… a moving account on the very essence of liberty that should be on the shelf of every American."
– Mark Levin, host of Life, Liberty & Levin and #1 New York Times bestselling author
"A fluent take on history and politics from a thoughtful contrarian."
– Kirkus Reviews
“Turley demonstrates a discomforting, and painfully timely, truth: The phrase “democratic despotism” is not an oxymoron.”
– George F. Will, Pulitzer Prize winner and Washington Post columnist
“Rage and the Republic is Jonathan Turley's birthday gift to America to mark its 250 years of independence... A wise guide to avoid wrecking the American project."
– Uri Berliner, contributing editor, Free Press and former senior business editor at National Public Radio
“A fascinating and inspiring account of the foundations of the American system…a must-read.”
– Nadine Strossen, former president of the American Civil Liberties Union
“[A] scholarly tour de force that could not be more timely.”
– Charles Lane, author of The Day Freedom Died and nonresident senior fellow, the American Enterprise Institute
"Brilliant and riveting. The American Revolution comes alive, and so does the birth of the Constitution.”
– Jed Rubenfeld, Yale Law Professor, author, and constitutional law expert
“[A] valuable contribution to American civic life.”
– Robert P. George, McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence and Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions
“An enjoyable book to read, one taken forward with great conviction and one that, crucially, encourages you to think.”
– Jeremy Black, former Professor of History at the University of Exeter and a Senior Fellow at the Center for the Study of America and the West, National Review
“Those dueling impulses, rage and reason, are the focus of “Rage and the Republic"... The question of democratic rage is timeless, and Mr. Turley’s historical narrative is sweeping—from the trial of Socrates to the rhetoric of Huey Long.”
– Adam J. White, Wall Street Journal
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