The Radical Center is very informative covering a very wide range of issues in current U.S. politics and putting them together in a thoughtful way and making creative proposals. It's refreshingly not dogmatic, postive and open-minded. I would highly recommend the book to any serious student of American policy today. It's an easy read. My criticism would be that the authors were too loose with their language at times leaving the reader to wonder whether (1) the authors had their facts wrong or (2) didn't recognize the implications of their words or (3) perhaps I was misinformed. For example, they state that the Demoncratic Party has been captured by its more extreme elements. But Clinton/Gore moved the Democratic Party decisively toward the center.

Halstead and Lind have done a fantastic job of setting out a centrist manifesto for the new century. This book is recommended reading for anyone in politics who wants to understand the ideas that can be used to build new coalitions.

Keep an eye on these two and The New America Foundation. They're writing about the things that everyone else will be discussing in ten years.

This book is a quick read but still offers up many thought-provoking discussions covering a wide range of issues facing America today. What I enjoy most about the book is that it objectively confronts many issues (like Social Security) that would be considered untouchable by current politicians. Their ideas are refreshing and definitely not a regurgitation of old-school thinking.

Although I would agree with some of the other reviewers in the respect that the authors tend to throw out some statements without backing them up, I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in domestic policy and the future of American politics.