Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto [Hardcover]

Mark R. Levin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 24, 2009

When nationally syndicated radio host Mark R. Levin’s Liberty and Tyranny appeared in the early months of the Obama presidency, Americans responded by making his clarion call for a new era in conservatism a #1 New York Times bestseller for an astounding twelve weeks. As provocative, well-reasoned, robust, and informed as his on-air commentary, with his love of our country and the legacy of our Founding Fathers reflected on every page, Levin’s galvanizing narrative provides a philosophical, historical, and practical framework for revitalizing the conservative vision and ensuring the preservation of American society.

In the face of the modern liberal assault on Constitution-based values, an attack that has resulted in a federal government that is a massive, unaccountable conglomerate, the time for reinforcing the intellectual and practical case for conservatism is now. In a series of powerful essays, Levin lays out how conservatives can counter the tyrannical liberal corrosion that has filtered into every timely issue affecting our daily lives, from the economy to health care, global warming to immigration, and more.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Author and conservative talk radio host Levin (Rescuing Sprite, Men in Black) takes on the Statist, a liberal straw man, in this collection of polemics against left-wing tenets (like "economic and social justice"), touchstones (like the New Deal) and institutions (strongholds of liberal thought like academia and the mainstream media). With "an insatiable appetite for control" and a veil of "moral indignation," Levin finds the Statist not only in congressional Democrats and President Obama's White House, but in "neo-Statists" like compassionate conservative Michael Gerson, and the Fed and Treasury under G.W. Bush. Many of Levin's arguments reiterate familiar tropes, including a "strict constructionist" view of the Constitution that sees Social Security as patently un-American. Predictably, Levin opposes the extension of health benefits, derides global warming (implicating Obama's "global warming czar" as a leader in "the Socialist International's Commission for a Sustainable World Society"), and fights back against immigrants, whom the Statist portrays "as universally more virtuous than the citizen." For those new to the Tea Party, Levin offers a handy roundup of conservative talking points, but anyone paying attention to talk radio over the past few years won't learn anything new.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

"The necessary book of the Obama era." -- Jeffrey Lord, The American Spectator

"Levin has delivered a stalwart conservative manifesto written by a conservative who doesn't want to re-brand and repackage conservatism into liberalism. He draws on founding principles, not polls, to lay out the agenda for the Right -- and to illuminate the fatal flaws of statism." -- Michelle Malkin

"This is quite simply the most important book of our times." -- Scott Miller, The Conservative Post

"This has the answer for everything you've asked yourself about yourself, and why you believe what you believe." -- Rush Limbaugh

"Liberty and Tyranny is Mark Levin: a man who loves his family and country and believes ideas have consequences -- and therefore will fight passionately for what he believes and knows to be true." -- Kathryn Jean Lopez, National Review

"While it may present itself as a "conservative manifesto" (and it is that, too) it is also a compelling primer on the most basic principles of the American political order." -- Gary L. McDowell, American Thinker

"Mark Levin's Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto couldn't be more relevant or important. It is a masterful restatement of conservative principles that is succinct...and yet comprehensive. It is thoughtful and deep but highly readable. It is timely yet timeless." -- David Limbaugh, TownHall.com

"This is a superbly useful book. It is the perfect companion for the college freshman to fortify the student against what he or she is about to hear. It is an ideal detoxicant for the graduating senior. Most vitally, it should be read by those who do not consider themselves conservatives, because it carefully lays out the central historic, philosophic and constitutional relationship between conservative principles and our individual freedom." -- Tony Blankley, The Washington Times

"If you want to rediscover true conservatism, read Mark Levin's Liberty and Tyranny. If you want to help preserve liberty, buy copies for your kids." -- Terry Jeffrey, CNS News

"It is a rarity that an important book arrives at its perfect moment. Such is the case with Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto...Against this tidal wave, Mark Levin offers not so much a defense as a plan of attack, a clarion call to roll back the seas of Change." -- Andrew C McCarthy, The New Criterion

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Threshold Editions; 1st edition (March 24, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416562850
• ISBN-13: 978-1416562856
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2,494 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,409 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #64 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics

More About the Author

Mark R. Levin is a nationally syndicated talk radio host and president of Landmark Legal Foundation. He has also worked as an attorney in the private sector and as a top adviser and administrator to several members of President Reagan's cabinet. He is the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling book Liberty and Tyranny, as well as New York Times bestselling books Rescuing Sprite and Men in Black: How the Supreme Court Is Destroying America, Mark holds a B.A. from Temple University and a J.D. from Temple University School of Law.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

865 of 966 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I am a Democrat who enjoyed this book., April 8, 2009

By 

Christopher M. Capone - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto (Hardcover)

I've been a Democrat for as long as I can remember. I am not a far left liberal, or a "Statist" as Mark would say. I do wonder though if Mark thinks all Democrats are Statists. I consider myself a Democrat simply because I am a little left of center, I am more conservative when it comes to fiscal matters and liberal when it comes to social issues. But as a Democrat, I enjoyed this book and I urge other people who may not see themselves as Conservatives to have an open mind and read this book. It is very well written and Mr. Levin makes many great points. If you're not a Conservatives, this book will not change your views overnight, so don't worry. Also, this book is not "Republican propaganda" as other reviewers, who probably didn't read the book, have labeled it. However, this book might open your eyes to things you never thought of before. After reading this book, I do have much more respect for true Conservative principles that Mr. Levin outlines. This was a good read.

1,709 of 2,090 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Left doth protest too much...with their silence, March 24, 2009

By 

Anna "Anna" (New York) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto (Hardcover)

In general, the louder someone complains, the closer you are to the truth. I anticipate numerous ad hominem 'reviews' from statists posted here. Do not let them talk you out of reading Liberty & Tyranny.

In any given generation, there are only a handful authors and thinkers whose creations can survive the ravages of time and the shifting sands of societal evolution. It is rarer still when a key book is written, recognized, and celebrated contemporarily.

Mark R. Levin logically lays out what has made the United States of America different from all other nations in the history of humanity. He re-introduces us to the founders and framers, and those people who inspired them long ago. At its most basic elements, our country was founded on the ideals of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness...and that we have these rights conferred on us, not by man or government, but by Natural Law, which originates with the Creator. Mr. Levin puts us back in touch with our founding doctrines, which are the at the very heart of what conservatism is and has always been.

For too long, Conservatives have let themselves be defined by the media. Mr. Levin's book recasts what it is to be a proud Conservative, and gives voice to those who are often silent in the face of ideological slander. If you believe in this great country, if you believe in truth and honesty, if you believe in life and principles, if you believe in freedom and patriotism, if you believe that all people are created equal and it is up to the individual to succeed according to their talents and interests, and if you believe in a smaller efficient government, and lower taxes, then this book is for you.

NY Times Best Seller - Hardcover Nonfiction - #1 for 12, #2 for 6 weeks!
Amazon: #1 Nonfiction book for over 30 consecutive days.
Over 1,200,000 sold as of Feb. 3rd 2010!
This is just the beginning. Though primarily written for the domestic market, there are certain truisms that speak to oppressed people globally. When L&T is translated, it may well become the Liberty Bell of our time as it exposes the universal persona of the pied piper-like statists and elitists who seek to destroy the individual. Liberty couldn't have a better lawyer than Mr. Levin.

September 14th, 2010 taught me something. Non-establishment candidates can win primaries.

...meanwhile, the deafening silence from ALL major media outlets continues. How much longer are they going to ignore Liberty & Tyranny? If you are ever asked "What media bias?" by your liberal friends, use this as your prime example.

638 of 778 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Conservative Catechism, March 24, 2009

By 

Charlie - See all my reviews

This review is from: Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto (Hardcover)

This book is perfect for the individual who has always "felt" conservative, but couldn't quite explain herself. Mark Levin's "Liberty and Tyranny" begins with an excellent overview of where our country is as a constitutional republic and how we got here. He then states clearly his book's theme and rallying cry -- Conservatives must know the philosophical foundations for the principles they purport to advance in order to defend liberty from the "soft tyranny" of modern liberalism.

Levin goes on meticulously (many more than 300 endnotes), but plainly explaining the principles of classic conservative philosophy of "prudent" progress, a government that is subservient to the people (rather than the other way around), the fundamental truth that rights are not derived from the government but from a higher power, that the free market system more than any other in history provides the best, most efficient and most just opportunity for individual prosperity as well as for the general welfare, and much much more.

Levin's book provides ample evidence of government encroachment on individual liberty and our country's descent into the soft tyranny warned of by Alexis de Tocqueville in our country's earliest years. Economic regulation, environmental extremism, the usurpation of representative government by the judiciary, unprecedented and uncontrolled illegal influx of people into out country, and the like threaten our economic viability. Finally, Levin's book details how the liberal (and some so-called conservative) political elite rejects the notion of American Exceptionalism and seek to surrender voluntarily the sovereignty our forefathers fought and died to give and to preserve for us.

This is a must read for those who wish to understand, defend and advance Conservatism