The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order

Features

• Offers the most complete history of the neoliberal order yet published, reconstructing both its rise and fall
• Restores the fall of Communism and the end of the Cold War to their pivotal place in American history
• Shows that neoliberalism originated as much on the Left (the New Left) as on the right, among individuals such as Paul Goodman, Stewart Brand, Steve Jobs, and Ralph Nader who were seeking ways to emancipate the self in an increasingly regulated and bureaucratized world

About the Author(s)

Gary Gerstle is Paul Mellon Professor of American History Emeritus and Paul Mellon Director of Research at the University of Cambridge. He is the author and editor of more than ten books, including two prizewinners, American Crucible (2017) and Liberty and Coercion (2015). He is a Guardian columnist and has also written for the Atlantic Monthly, the New Statesman, Dissent, The Nation, and Die Zeit, among others. He frequently appears on BBC Radio 4, BBC World Service, ITV 4, Talking Politics, and NPR.

Reviews

"It's rare that one can use the term instant classic in a book review, but Gary Gerstle's latest economic history, The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order, warrants the praise." -- Rana Foroohar, Financial Times

"His American focus might also finally allow British readers to escape their factional trenches and appreciate the shape of neoliberalism. It is a terrific service...joy to read." -- Tom Clark, Prospect

"Gary Gerstle's book, already considered a classic, accurately dissects this economic era that opened in the 1980s." -- Frederic Mas, Atlantico

"Anyone baffled at how the U.S. could possibly have moved over a half-century from embracing a state-centered New Deal to relentlessly unraveling it will be greatly enlightened by Gerstle's beautifully written, engrossing, and powerful telling of the rise of the neoliberal order. And some may take heart from his claim that it too is in free-fall, albeit leaving behind enduring vestiges of free market orthodoxy. I know no better guide to the complex transformations that have shaped our own times." -- Lizabeth Cohen, Howard Mumford Jones Professor of American Studies, Harvard University, and author of Saving America's Cities

"The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order finds a master historian at the top of his craft. By identifying Clinton as the key facilitator, Gerstle is the first historian to so compellingly show how and why neoliberal ideas were installed in a new political order. With no less acuity, Gerstle also shows the neoliberal order cracking up over the last decade. What happens next? I know of no better political history of our times to help answer that question than this gem of a book." -- Jonathan Levy, Professor of History, University of Chicago

"Gerstle's important book offers us an illuminating and rich interpretation of the power and popularity of neoliberalism in America. A true history of the movement, situating neoliberalism in relation to classical liberalism, the New Deal and global Communism. Essential reading." -- Adam Tooze, Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Professor of History, Columbia University

"Expertly synthesizing a vast body of new scholarship—on international trade, the Cold War, race, polarization, Ralph Nader, the labor movement, and the rise of conservatism—Gary Gerstle delivers the most compendious and commanding history of neoliberal America to date. Along the way he opens new windows on the unexpected collaboration between Bill Clinton and Newt Gingrich in deregulating America into the internet future. Gerstle also provides the best account I've read of how "neoliberal" came to be the word of choice for an order that promises liberation and delivers subjection, that divides our two parties on some issues but conjoins them on others." -- Corey Robin, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, Brooklyn College and the CUNY Graduate Center

"Among the foremost chroniclers of the American past, Gary Gerstle deploys in this bold book the powerful notion of 'political order' to examine our most recent history—the past forty years when the nation fastened its fortunes to marketization, global economic integration, a harsh penal state and sharpening inequality. By charting the rise and fall of the neoliberal order, this fast-paced account helps us make sense of the arch of American history from Ronald Reagan to Bernie Sanders, from Bill Clinton to Donald Trump. A must read for anyone interested in the world we inhabit today, with all its mortal dangers and yet-to-be fulfilled promises." -- Sven Beckert, Laird Bell Professor of History, Harvard University

"Gary Gerstle offers a brilliant, engaging, and provocative first-draft history of the last half century, a period sorely in need of scrutiny. With characteristic big-think flair, he shows that the neoliberal wisdom of that era—that markets would bring democracy, that the age of big government was over—emerged from specific historical forces and circumstances. He also suggests that many of those ideas can and should now be consigned to the past." -- Beverly Gage, Professor of History & American Studies, Yale University

"Just beneath the surface of our fractured and polarized polity, Gary Gerstle argues that there has been a Neoliberal Order under which both parties worked in the 1990s and early 2000s. Even as they bitterly disagreed, the nation's political debate moved far away from the class-based pillars of the New Deal. In another of his characteristically eye-opening analyses, Gerstle takes readers through the rise and fall of the political order that has shaped our leaders and electorate—that is, until powerful forces over the past decade, on the right and left, have opened the door to a new era." -- Julian Zelizer, author of Abraham Joshua Heschel

"A cogent, erudite historical analysis." --Kirkus Reviews

"Enlightening ... Gerstle carefully recreates the new order Reagan wanted ... Gerstle emphasizes its market side - the administration's busting of the air-traffic controllers' union, its deregulation of key industries, its dramatic reduction of the wealthiest Americans' tax rate and its attempt to construct a Supreme Court hostile to the New Deal order - which, as it turned out, released the force of greed more than it did the genius of the marketplace.... There the neoliberal order remained, all but untouchable in its orthodoxy, until the crash of 2008. In that seismic event Gerstle sees a dynamic much like the one that had shattered the New Deal order. ... [A] fine book."--The New York Times

"A brilliant study of neoliberalism....A heady, enthralling mural of big ideas and revelatory anecdotes, reminiscent of Thomas Piketty's A Brief History of Inequality." --Hamilton Cain, Oprah Daily

"[A] new political economy epic." -- Fortune.com

"Gerstle offers a rich and sophisticated discussion of neoliberalism...an important and beautifully written book." --The Washington Post

"Gary Gerstle...masterfully blends compelling analysis with a propulsive narrative." -- Daniel Geary, Irish Times

"Brilliantly conceived, capaciously argued, and written with great clarity...so impressive and timely. For those interested in a meaningful historical perspective on where we are now, I can think of no better book."--Steven Hahn, The Nation

"[A] splendid and stimulating history of neo-liberalism's rise and possible 'fall'...The elements of neo-liberalism, and its genesis as a political order, are expertly connected, enabling us to better appreciate the global present."--Ian Tyrrell, Australian Book Review

"One of the smartest, most perceptive books I've read in years."--Christopher Leonard, author of The Lords of Easy Money