Treason: Liberal Treachery from the Cold War to the War on Terrorism (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

“Liberals’ loyalty to the United States is off-limits as a subject of political debate. Why is the relative patriotism of the two parties the only issue that is out of bounds for rational discussion?”

In a stunning follow-up to her number one bestseller Slander, leading conservative pundit Ann Coulter contends that liberals have been wrong on every foreign policy issue, from the fight against Communism at home and abroad, the Nixon and the Clinton presidencies, and the struggle with the Soviet empire right up to today’s war on terrorism. “Liberals have a preternatural gift for always striking a position on the side of treason,” says Coulter. “Everyone says liberals love America, too. No, they don’t.” From Truman to Kennedy to Carter to Clinton, America has contained, appeased, and retreated, often sacrificing America’s best interests and security. With the fate of the world in the balance, liberals should leave the defense of the nation to conservatives.

Reexamining the sixty-year history of the Cold War and beyond—including the career of Senator Joseph McCarthy, the Whittaker Chambers–Alger Hiss affair, Ronald Reagan’s challenge to Mikhail Gorbachev to “tear down this wall,” the Gulf War, and our present war on terrorism—Coulter reveals how liberals have been horribly wrong in all their political analyses and policy prescriptions. McCarthy, exonerated by the Venona Papers if not before, was basically right about Soviet agents working for the U.S. government. Hiss turned out to be a high-ranking Soviet spy (who consulted Roosevelt at Yalta). Reagan, ridiculed throughout his presidency, ended up winning the Cold War. And George W. Bush, also an object of ridicule, has performed exceptionally in responding to America’s newest threats at home and abroad.

Coulter, who in Slander exposed a liberal bias in today’s media, also examines how history, especially in the latter half of the twentieth century, has been written by liberals and, therefore, distorted by their perspective. Far from being irrelevant today, her clearheaded and piercing view of what we’ve been through informs us perfectly for challenges today and in the future.

With Slander, Ann Coulter became the most recognized and talked-about conservative intellectual of the year. Treason, in many ways an even more controversial and prescient book, will ignite impassioned political debate at one of the most crucial moments in our history.


From the Hardcover edition.

From the Inside Flap

?Liberals? loyalty to the United States is off-limits as a subject of political debate. Why is the relative patriotism of the two parties the only issue that is out of bounds for rational discussion??

In a stunning follow-up to her number one bestseller Slander, leading conservative pundit Ann Coulter contends that liberals have been wrong on every foreign policy issue, from the fight against Communism at home and abroad, the Nixon and the Clinton presidencies, and the struggle with the Soviet empire right up to today?s war on terrorism. ?Liberals have a preternatural gift for always striking a position on the side of treason,? says Coulter. ?Everyone says liberals love America, too. No, they don?t.? From Truman to Kennedy to Carter to Clinton, America has contained, appeased, and retreated, often sacrificing America?s best interests and security. With the fate of the world in the balance, liberals should leave the defense of the nation to conservatives.

Reexamining the sixty-year history of the Cold War and beyond?including the career of Senator Joseph McCarthy, the Whittaker Chambers?Alger Hiss affair, Ronald Reagan?s challenge to Mikhail Gorbachev to ?tear down this wall,? the Gulf War, and our present war on terrorism?Coulter reveals how liberals have been horribly wrong in all their political analyses and policy prescriptions. McCarthy, exonerated by the Venona Papers if not before, was basically right about Soviet agents working for the U.S. government. Hiss turned out to be a high-ranking Soviet spy (who consulted Roosevelt at Yalta). Reagan, ridiculed throughout his presidency, ended up winning the Cold War. And George W. Bush, also an object of ridicule, has performed exceptionally in responding to America?s newest threats at home and abroad.

Coulter, who in Slander exposed a liberal bias in today?s media, also examines how history, especially in the latter half of the twentieth century, has been written by liberals and, therefore, distorted by their perspective. Far from being irrelevant today, her clearheaded and piercing view of what we?ve been through informs us perfectly for challenges today and in the future.

With Slander, Ann Coulter became the most recognized and talked-about conservative intellectual of the year. Treason, in many ways an even more controversial and prescient book, will ignite impassioned political debate at one of the most crucial moments in our history.


From the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Three Rivers Press; 1st Paperback Edition edition (October 5, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1400050324
• ISBN-13: 978-1400050321
• Product Dimensions: 12.4 x 8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2,023 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #142,633 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

83 of 90 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just the facts Ma'am, July 11, 2003

By	R. Whitelaw "Rebel Broker" (Morgan Hill, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Treason: Liberal Treachery from the Cold War to the War on Terrorism (Hardcover)

Back in the 1980's, while working on my degree in History in Silicon Valley, CA, I often found myself in heated arguments which fundamentally revolved around a single idea - McCarthy was right.

Years later, while teaching a History class at a High School, a new book was published about "Venona" - or decrypted soviet communications from before, during and after McCarthy's supposed reigh of terror. This evidence should have put to rest any questions regarding the accuracy and importance of McCarthy and his efforts.

I introduced this information since the history book provided by the district was clearly biased and inaccurate given the latest information. I was told to simply "teach the book" by administrators. I was not prevented from presenting the new information, but sticking to the book was the suggestion first offered.

Ms. Coulter, lays out all the facts in her latest work. Sprinkled with her usual witty jabs at those on the left, she takes the reader through a well documented and supported thesis.

However, its sad that works like this get couched in the usual left/right, democrat/republican hopper. Instead, you can simply read her claims and check for yourself. Its all there. All the sources are dutifully noted for the reader to fact check on their own.

The myth of who and what McCarthy is may never be corrected. A lie repeated often enough becomes the truth... particularly after half a century! Perhaps this will be a good way to discover how many years of facts it takes to restore the truth.

Interested in learning more? Simply do a search on Amazon for the word "Venona" in the book title. There are several works on the subject and they are astonishingly eye opening.

Finally, when reading books like this, always let the notations be your guide. If the bibliography does not have primary sources listed, its not likely to be worth your time - or its supposed "facts".

55 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Courage To Baffle The Punditocracy, June 29, 2003

By	Francis W. Porretto "Curmudgeon Emeritus" (Mount Sinai, NY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Treason: Liberal Treachery from the Cold War to the War on Terrorism (Hardcover)

Ann Coulter's book Treason, the most important political book in the past half-century, is now available. It should be required reading for every American. Yes, I'm perfectly serious.

Treason addresses the extraordinary contrast the Left's approach to national security makes with that of the Right. The first hundred twenty pages of the book are given to a shattering re-examination of the life and work of the most maligned figure in modern American politics: Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin. As was Slander, it's meticulously footnoted -- and all the references appear to check out perfectly.

There are folks who dislike Coulter's take-no-prisoners style. "Of tastes there is nothing written," say the sages. There are folks who think no one would pay her any attention if she weren't a tall, beautiful blonde. Nearly all of these are her ideological adversaries. There are folks who think her willingness to say precisely what she thinks is somehow shameful, a detriment to the American political dialogue. These persons, who've dispensed a lot of slander at conservatives in their day, have a funny idea of the dictates of gentility.

Ann Coulter has been called virtually every vicious name in the book for her opinions and her unabashed presentations thereof. I don't agree with all of her positions, but I admire her tremendously for her courage. When one makes one's living by the written word, to express oneself as she's done requires quite a lot of courage. As has been pointed out by many observers of the punditry scene, including Coulter herself, it's not conservative authors who rake in the big bucks for their work -- despite their enormous differential popularity among persons who buy nonfiction books.

Name one person in public life these past fifty years who's had a kind word for Joe McCarthy. With the aid of the recently declassified Venona Project intercepts of Soviet cable transmissions, Coulter constructs an airtight case that McCarthy was dead accurate, which would make him the preeminent defender of the United States since the conclusion of World War II. She never flinches from this stance. She exposes a thousand libels and deliberate distortions of the record, perpetrated by the Democratic Party and its annex in the media, in the attempt to undermine McCarthy's case. She labels those who've rewritten history to defame the Senator in the years since his hearings as traitors -- a label they richly deserve.

With Communism essentially defeated, defending the foremost crusader against Communist infiltration of the United States government, dead for almost a half-century, might seem like an unnecessary undertaking. Unnecessary or not, it is simple justice -- and for seeing to it, Ann Coulter deserves far more credit for her forthrightness, her clarity, and her courage than she's likely to get.

80 of 87 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious and Interesting, April 16, 2005

By	B. Hunt (USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Treason: Liberal Treachery from the Cold War to the War on Terrorism (Hardcover)

The more I read of Ann Coulter, the more I think she's the wittiest writer around today. She's just hilarious. It's worth also listening to the abridged audio books in the car just to hear her deliver the zingers herself. My husband and I listen to her audio books on long drives, and she has us laughing out loud the whole way.

Aside from being highly entertaining, this book was interesting. She writes in detail about Soviet infiltration of our government and media during the Cold War. The book presented a lot of information that I had never heard before and made me want to investigate the subject further.

Don't be fooled--this book has three stars because people who hate Ann Coulter's politics have been giving the book one star. Buy this book, and you won't be disappointed.