Cowboy Republic: Six Ways the Bush Gang Has Defied the Law (Paperback)

~ (Author), Richard Falk (Foreword)
Key Phrases: willful killing, spying program, signing statements, United States, Supreme Court, Security Council (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

In "Cowboy Republic," Marjorie Cohn offers a penetrating analysis of the six most important ways in which the Bush administration has weakened the rule of law. Cohn, a respected legal scholar, details the illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq; the policy of torture; war crimes; Guantanamo's kangaroo courts; unconstitutional laws; and the unlawful surveillance of American citizens. She concludes with practical ways to strengthen the rule of law domestically and internationally, including both political and legal remedies.

About the Author

Cohn is assistant professor of law at Thomas Jefferson School of Law.

Richard Falk is Albert G. Milbank Professor of International Law and Practice at Princeton University.

Product Details

• Paperback: 191 pages
• Publisher: Polipoint Press (June 28, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0977825337
• ISBN-13: 978-0977825332
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #807,340 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bush Administration Legal Record Eviscerated, July 5, 2007

By	D. Sevilla "Explorer" (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

What a well-reasoned legal analysis of Bush administration actions and policies. This administration is tried and found guilty. If you're looking for talking points to refute right-wing friends or talking heads, this book argues them for you in clear convincing language.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Restoring the Rule of Law, August 19, 2007

By	Eric A. Isaacson (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Professor Marjorie Cohn provides a much needed review of the Bush administration's legal record - from launching a "preemptive" war on the basis of palpable falsehoods, to advocating and even practicing torture at Guantanamo and by proxy through "extraordinary renditions," to warrantless wiretaps and spying on Americans, to overreaching claims of executive power that ignore validly passed laws and upset the framers' careful balance of constitutional powers.

Professor Cohn's book shows how an administration that claims a high regard for democracy and the rule of law has in truth demonstrated a deep-seated contempt for both -- explaining why the rest of the world is so fast losing faith in America and her ideals.

Professor Cohn's book should help Americans to come to terms with the harm that the Bush administration has done so far. And that, I believe, is a critical step to restoring our national decency and honor.

Eric Alan Isaacson

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cowboy Republic: Reader! Inform yourself with the very best.., July 12, 2007

By	Daniel N. Fox (Pomona, California, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Daniel Ellsberg likes this book and so do I. Geoffrey Stone, foremost constitutional scholar, likes this book, and so do I.

It is a scholarly and complete exposition of a vital subject, the ruination of our country both inside and outside. Ms. Cohn skillfully describes the Bush-led hollowing-out of our former constitutional liberties coupled with a catastrophic war. Marjorie Cohn, President of the National Lawyers Guild, an organization of lawyers who value human rights over property rights, uses the analytical abilities of a skilled lawyer and law professor to point the way out of the mess.

Ms. Cohn's writing makes you want to read on and on, and lay all other things aside until the book is read. How many books of any kind do that to you?