Product Description

Like a newly discovered treasure map offering a path to buried riches, Foxes in the Henhouse is a hard-hitting political blueprint for how the Democrats can win again in the South and rural America. The authors document the Republicans' rise in the South and Midwest, expose the hypocrisy that marked their ascent, and offer a take-no-prisoners plan to kick them out.

The authors know of what they speak. "Rural strategists" Steve Jarding and Dave "Mudcat" Saunders are famous for securing Democratic victories in places they shouldn't have -- most notably in Mark Warner's successful run for governor of Virginia, a campaign that wasn't afraid to use bluegrass concerts and NASCAR to get the message out.

When George W. Bush swept the South clean in 2004, it was the final insult to Jarding and Saunders, two self-proclaimed "bubbas" on a mission to convince their fellow southerners and rural Americans that the GOP's claim of representing "values," patriotism, the sportsmen, and fiscal conservatism is a disastrous farce. In addition to exposing the lies behind the gradual Republican invasion of the hinterland that began in the 1960s, they offer some surprisingly simple strategies for Democrats to capture each of these issues. Among other things, Jarding and Saunders urge Democrats to

• Quit turning their noses up at the culture of rural America and talk to people where they live

• Learn how to count when going after votes

• Show some passion and retaliate when Republicans assassinate their characters

Packed with meticulous and shocking research findings; blunt, laugh-out-loud language; and merciless assaults on George W. Bush, Tom DeLay, Bill O'Reilly, and plenty of other right-wing charlatans, Foxes in the Henhouse is a must-read and will be one of the most talked-about books of the year and for election cycles to come.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1219522 in Books
• Published on: 2006-10-10
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 336 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Those who stayed up late to watch with worry or woke in dismay after the November 2004 presidential elections will welcome this answer to "How in the Hell did this happen?" as the first chapter, aptly titled, promises to explain. In this humorous discussion of what went wrong and how to change it, Harvard professor Jarding and Virginia politico Saunders present a method to secure a Democratic victory by gaining the lead in the South and the Midwest. The book encourages Democrats to open their minds to the rural culture of "Bubbas," or blue collar, religious folks who despise government intrusion, have been voting Republican and would respond to political "NASCAR marketing." Jarding and Saunders keep it lively, interspersing low-blow jabs at Republicans with statistics, political history and strategies for Democrats to connect with Bubbas over contentious issues like gun control, environmental protection, gay marriage and abortion.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
"The message from Foxes in the Henhouse is one that must be heard again and again by a lot of Democrats, who do not understand it and have forgotten the importance of reaching out to all voters, of showing passion, of taking stands, of establishing political turf, and of building grassroots organization."

-- Former Massachusetts governor Michael Dukakis

Customer Reviews

Outstanding!
Jarding and Saunders provide a credible, well-reasoned, and easy-to-read critique of recent Democratic campaigns, along with suggestions for significant improvement.

"Foxes in the Henhouse" begins by dissecting the '04 Presidential election into numerous dimensions, showing that Bush had improved over '00 results in about every way possible - concluding that the problem was not that eg. "Bush was a wartime President - very difficult to beat" but that Kerry, et al, had run an ineffective campaign.

Kerry's last mistake was ending up with $15 million in the bank, and 75,000 votes short in Ohio that he possibly could have won had the money been used. His first mistake - conceding the equivalent of 27 states (Bush campaigned everywhere) and their 227 electoral votes - 84% of the total Bush needed to win. Most of the 27 states were in the South, fastest growing area in the U.S. and an area Saunders had recently demonstrated as winnable via Democrat Warner's 2004 victory in the governor's race.

The authors assert that character assassination is now a conventional weapon for Republicans, and Democrats need to fire back. Kerry, for example, should have immediately gone after Bush on the Swift Boat attacks, and called for a debate on military matters (current issues and past service), and held it in the South. They also believe that '04 Democrats mistakenly focused on the economy instead of the war on terror, and added Wesley Clark or Bob Kerrey to the ticket. (Another possibility was Sen. Graham with a 70% approval rating in Florida. a state with 27 electoral votes - enough for Kerry to win.) Instead, Kerry let himself look foolish on the topic by being framed with the "I voted for the "87 billion in spending before I voted against it."

"Foxes in the Henhouse" claims that data show voters in the South and rural America increasingly voting primarily according to issues of patriotism (eg. anti-flag-burning) or morals (they also attend church more often). Republicans have taken advantage of this by using these polarizing issues, without even being burdened with pressure to deliver tangible goods. (Possibly part of the reason Bush II feels free to fill positions with little regard for competence.) The "key" to winning the South is utilizing means to connect culturally with its masses.

The authors believe that the best way to start connecting is NASCAR - eg. sponsor a car. Another is country music - eg. rewrite a popular song to endorse a candidate and have it played regularly by a popular hillbilly band. A third is via other sports - eg. hand out pins with the school and the candidate's name at football games. A fourth suggestion is to get a leading sportsperson to get out the word (eg. at gun shows) that the candidate is not going to be taking away their guns (helps also if the candidate can shoot well).

Finally, Jarding and Saunders offer specifics on rebutting claims that Republicans are the party of family values and God (eg. abortion rates rose 25% under Bush), fiscal conservatism (enormous spending increases; letters from Harvard Business School professors and Nobel laureates in Economics criticizing Bush's "accomplishments," and national defense (serious blunders in setting Iraq troop levels, insufficient armor, trying to short-change veteran's benefits and reduce "combat pay).

Bottom-Line: "Foxes in the Henhouse" ought to boost the morale of any Democrat, and boost all their candidates.

The new gospel for Southern Democrats
I am a Southern Democrat, proud and true. This book is for ANY AND EVERYONE associated with progressive politics or the Democratic party. Not only does it outline just what went wrong the past years, but it tells us how to get our butts in shape to get things back on the right track. Real people are being affected by bad policy, and are being douped into buying into the system that is screwing them over. It's time to listen to Mudcat and get movin in the right direction.

Required Reading
Foxes in the Henhouse should be required reading for any Democrat or Independent who loves this country and is unwilling to let it continue on the Republicans' disasterous course. (Any writers willing to say that Reagan couldn't carry LBJ's jockstrap are aces in my book!)