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The Ruling Class: How They Corrupted America and What We Can Do About It

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For thirty years I have been hammering away about the crucial importance of understanding "power elite analysis" or "libertarian class analysis" in order to make sense of how American society operates. Historic events are not random and unconnected but fall within an intelligible political/economic context.

This is clearly something our Founding Fathers knew well. They spelled this out for all the world to see and reflect upon in the Declaration of Independence.

(See my Amazon.com Listmania! "Libertarian Class Analysis" for more book titles on this vital subject.)

I have never seen this stated in such a clear and eloquent manner than in Angelo M. Codevilla's new book, The Ruling Class: How They Corrupted America And What We Can Do About It. It should be read by everyone concerned with the future of our nation, and shared with friends, family, colleagues, etc.

Dr. Codevilla's original article which forms the heart and soul of this volume was published in the July-August edition of The American Spectator.

It is the most important essay I have ever read. He has expanded upon this initial article in this compact but concise paperback.

For the first time I have begun to understand how generations of leftist intellectuals and activists were passionately moved and inspired by the Communist Manifesto of 1848, or how our own American Revolutionaries were motivated in 1776 by Tom Paine's stirring Common Sense, clearly elucidating the case for American independence from British tyranny and oppression.

Codevilla has written a true American manifesto for our time, a brilliant analytical framework and dramatic call to action that will motivate millions in the Freedom Movement, the Tea Parties, and in the general society at-large.

His work draws on the pioneering scholarship of Bernard Bailyn (The Origins of American Politics, The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution) and Murray Rothbard (Conceived in Liberty, The Ethics of Liberty) in seeing American politics as two adversarial classes at war with each other -- an arrogant elite ruling class and "the country class" -- the rest of us held at bay.

It deserves the widest possible readership and distribution possible.

Codevilla thesis divides the country into two halves to make his case. These are not the typical talking points that the left drones on about: the haves and the have nots (John Edwards two Americas garbage), rather Codevilla's two classes are those who feed the political elites and the political elites themselves.

According to Codevilla remarkable thesis the keys to power and becoming an elite has little to do with wealth. A Texan oilman or a Missouri real estate developer may be worth tens of millions of dollars, as much if not more than the top tier of Codevilla elites. It's the elites and their functionaries' ability to expropriate the wealth of the non-politically connected that makes them powerful, comfortable and provides them with wealthy. The elites through their control of government determines who gets to put his hand in the till and who pays into that till. This explains why the majority of careerists who rely on the tax dollars of others so readily and willingly vote democrat.

The keys of power are also bestowed to those who belong to the right circles. The right circles include the nation's elite ivy league universities, think tanks and journalistic outfits. These, as Codevilla illustrates with Clarence Thomas, doesn't guarantee you a seat at the table of the elites but they are most certainly required. As with the example of Lawrence Tribe, all sins can be forgiven if you belong and talk the talk.

The original vision of America was and still is one of the crowning achievements in human history but its core principles have been eroded by Codevilla's elites. These United States has been replaced with The United States indicating a shift from federalism to federal authority. Equality of opportunity has been supplanted by equality of outcome. A Republic has been replaced with an Oligarchy. The rule of law has become the rule of man. Leaders have been replaced with rulers.

Americans don't appreciate being "ruled" by our betters and are not pleased that our meritocracy has been replaced with nepotism. Codevilla thesis is long overdue and should have a significant impact.

What a refreshing change from the fare we're used to seeing from the academy. The book's title suggested a thesis of Marxist class dichotomy, but Professor Codevilla handles what I call America's "predator class" in far more thoughtful, nuanced analysis.

His discussion of the 'home-schooling' movement is particularly welcome. Ours is a second-generation homeschooling family, and I find this author's characterization of home-based learning (history's preferred venue) a breath of fresh air.

I also appreciate the proper framing of urban-vs-rural worldview and folkways: nearly antithetical. The media has long portrayed urban life as normative and rural life as 'flyover country'. Professor Codevilla brings us back to the reality of the ages. Bravo.

Where I would disagree with this otherwise superb treatise is in the somewhat false class dichotomy. By James Madison's plan -- which is after all our Supreme Law -- 'We The People' are the sovereigns over every governmental tool of ruse and plunder that the mercantilists may dream up. This is what the author is describing: the predator class, who for 150 years has used Congress to soak the working man. But the very act of calling them a 'ruling class' only exacerbates the problem of citizen abdication of duty.

In Chapter 12 of my book This Bloodless Liberty, I expose the dizzying array of parasite classes who exist in symbiosis with the predator class and with "America's Illegals", the U.S. Congress. The domestic enemy of the American Dream is far more extensive than the monied class.

But in that book, I also explain that AmericaAgain! -- a three-pronged citizens' self-governance mechanism -- is the end of politics and the beginning of informed self-government. The 'Country Class' can have a solution without having to do battle directly against wealthy, powerful folk. Simply cut their illicit puppet-strings to Congress. This is explained at JoinAmericaAgain (dot) com.

Professor Codevilla's us/them dichotomy of a 'ruling class' stands against James Madison's ideal in designing the constitutional republic where by Supreme Law, We The People are the 'ruling class' -- all of us. We have only to take up our long-neglected duties of oversight and law enforcement. In this Internet Age, we have now found a way to do so with withering effectiveness, for the rest of history.

That said, I highly recommend Codevilla's book for grasping the lay of the land as it is today.

The 22 page version of this sold out locally when it hit the newsstands in the July/August issue of The American Spectator. Codevilla puts his finger on the pulse of how most Americans feel concerning our career politicians. The Ruling Class for too long has been running the show; one can't tell much difference between career Democrats or Republicans. It's Democrat or "Democrat Lite," the GOP. This problem has led to the rise of the unruly Tea Party; those Americans who are beginning to refuse to submit to the dictates of the Ruling Class and its enablers.
Tea Party people couldn't care less about being cool and hip, but are deeply concerned about the future, and this is where Codevilla takes us. This is a guide to the Ruling Class and how to counter it. This is the guidebook for those of us that don't like where we have ended up after being led for years by this subspecies of human being. Codevilla includes the Declaration of Independence, as well as the Constitution in his book. Even those who consider themselves well educated on issues have read the original article that Codevilla wrote and have been astounded by his insight. This book takes it further. I would recommend this book, as well as Goldberg's "Bias," and Hayek's "The Road to Serfdom" as must reads for those who are looking for insight. Codevilla's book on Switzerland during WWII and the extortion by politicians, those connected to them, and corrupt judges of over one-billion dollars from Swiss banks is a good read also(Between the Alps and a Hard Place).

Codevilla offers an analysis of our political quagmire that gets beyond left and right, red and blue, Republican and Democrat, and other simplistic and shallow descriptions.

He offers an intellectual substantiation for the tea party movement not unlike Thomas Paine's Common Sense was for the original revolution. The Elites, the Ruling Class includes most Democrats, much of Wall Street (as opposed to Main Street) and some of the Republicans vs the Country Class- those who work for a living, volunteer, value family and are more likely to value religious belief of some sort.

The problem is that the Ruling Class which is a minority of the population is cohesive while the Country Class is dispersed, tending to subject their political support to various litmus tests. The Tea Party is an effort to find some cohesiveness for the majority.

The Ruling Class is a short and clear must read for a clearer understanding of our political climate.

It is not the GOP vs. the White House and the Congress. It is the White House and the Congress vs. American people. The ruling class wants to reshape you, your family, and your community. A clear statement of the problem we face today with no workable solution offered. A must read! The solution to this political mess we are in lies with the readers of this book.

The Ruling Class, by Dr. Angelo Codevilla, in an expansion of the article published in The American Spectator earlier this year.

This book shows in the detail the growth of the American Mandarin class. They are a minority in this country. However, they have strategically placed themselves at the levers of power and have a client class to support them. Some may be surprised that this Ruling Class is in both political parties and includes captains of large nominal private corporations.



The Country class is the majority. They have allegiance to both political parties and encompass all races. Most work in the private sector and have little time for the minutiae of politics and public policy. Dr. Codevilla shows how this is an advantage for the Ruling Class.

Solutions are suggested by the author. Some are warned against; such as violent Revolution.

I was able to read this book in one sitting and read The Declaration or Independence and The Constitution added to the book. It has been many years since I read these two documents in my High School Civics Class. In the Declaration, King George seems a relative piker compared to today's self styled royalty. When re reading the Constitution, I ask myself how much of recent legislation could pass constitutional muster and isn't instantly struck down.

I would urge anyone regardless of their political alignment to read this book and the two addenda at the end.

A great book that puts into words what we probably knew, deep down, all along. What is the defining feature of "the elites", for example? What do Chris Matthews and John Kerry have in common? (One is fairly smart and the other being a pompous ass, but they get along so well, and both are wrong almost all the time.)

Angelo Codevilla describes the "Ruling Class" so well, and the only disappointing aspect of the book is the realization that I could never be a member of that class, regardless of my income or achievements! If you care about why this country has slid into the government-centered mess that we are now in, you must read this book. If you like it, subscribe to "American Spectator", which brought us the article on this subject that started this ball rolling.

Rush Limbaugh, on reading the Spectator article, spent some time extolling it's virtues. His take was that being a member of the "Ruling Class" was akin to sitting at the cool table in high school, a status that is hard to define but you'll know it when you see it. Those of us who didn't sit at the cool table always realized that we didn't really want to, but so many of us were envious anyway! Rush is right: many people never really left high school.

Codevilla hits the nail on the head with his book. He makes a very powerful argument for the existence of the "ruling class" and the need to get them out. Book is shorter than one might think; he also includes the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Short, yet superb read. If you don't have it, you need to invest a few dollars and get it.

I know the owner of a small restaurant here in the suburbs of Dallas. He wanted to name his restaurant (his !) with a name that had the word for an alcoholic drink in it. He was told by the ruling city counsel - which has been in power far too long, btw - that he couldn't because they didn't "want to promote drinking". He was just told that the way the French aristocracy would have told it to someone in the 1600s. And when he asked a question he was rebuffed with "you are challenging us, Sam !". No democratic process, if you ask a question of the "rulers", you are challenging them and they will get back at you.

Flash back to Hyde Park in about 2000. Michelle Obama is working (I use that term lightly) for a hospital in Chicago, making $ 320,000 a year. Was she a surgeon ? No. A doctor ? No. So what was she ? Well, an over-educated"administrator", and that is the salary for that job, when your husband is politically connected in Illinois. So the Obama's were probably making close to $ 500,000 a year, not because they worked hard and made big contributions to society. Rather, they were well connected and were at the receiving end of a large spigot of money being "redistributed" from Washington D.C. and the city and state.

And that is what is meant by the "Ruling Class". If you go to places like the suburbs of D.C., parts of Chicago, San Francisco, etc. you will not see CEOs who employ thousands and make products or services. You will encounter the "ruling class" of well-connected people who are a network for spending YOUR money, because, as Bill Clinton once said, the people don't know how to spend it, but their rulers do.

The book itself is small and an easy read. It did paint a slightly too black and white picture, but in essence, it is spot on and eye opening.