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The Unraveling

Reflections on Politics without Ethics and Democracy in Crisis

The Unraveling cover

The Unraveling

Reflections on Politics without Ethics and Democracy in Crisis

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Pre-order. Available 05 Feb 2026
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Description

Essential reading for anyone interested in modern American politics, get the book that former President Barack Obama on X calls "a deeply thoughtful book" and says, "couldn't be a more timely read."

Now with a new foreword by Jack Goldsmith, co-founder of Lawfare Blog, and with a new afterword from the author on the ethical dilemmas during the second Trump administration.

Part memoir, part rumination on the declining moral compass of the American political class, The Unraveling is the first book to place restoring political ethics at the center of the renewal of American democracy. Politics is a brutal game, but Bauer asks where does the line fall between the “hardball” of politics and attacks on the very foundation of democracy? Looking back on 46 years in the political arena, Bauer tries to better grasp what has gone wrong and to understand what shaped his own decisions and actions. He offers anecdotes, perspectives, and insights that are vitally relevant in our world today, including efforts in 2020 (and 2024) to defend our democratic system of elections from attack and distrust, and the struggles with social media, such as Meta, to combat disinformation in a post-truth politics. The expanded paperback edition includes a new concluding chapter highlighting the ethical failures of public institutions under the the second Trump administration-law firms, universities, and the media, as well as the Trump administration itself-and the imperative to do better in order to preserve the consent of the governed in American democracy.

He writes about the various personal experiences along the way-the highs, the lows, and the absurd. Bauer presents a smart and serious look at our political culture and the role that he has played in shaping it. The Unraveling will be essential reading for anyone interested in American politics of the last 50 years--and the next.

Table of Contents

Foreword, by John Meacham
Foreword to the Paperback Edition, by Jack Goldsmith
Preface
Chapter 1: First Words about a Life in Politics
Chapter 2: Getting into the Business
Chapter 3: Politics and the Warrior Mentality
Chapter 4: The Weapon of Political Power
Chapter 5: Lying, Manipulation, and Debates
Chapter 6: Money in Politics
Chapter 7: The Press
Chapter 8: Impeachment
Chapter 9: Representing Presidents
Chapter 10: Joe Biden's 2020 Campaign
Chapter 11: On the Nature of Political Ethics
Chapter 12: Ethical Action in Politics
Last Words
Afterword to the Paperback Edition
Notes
Index
About the Author

Product details

Published 05 Feb 2026
Format Ebook (PDF)
Edition 1st
Extent 256
ISBN 9798216389996
Imprint Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Illustrations 10 BW Photos
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Author

Bob Bauer

Bob Bauer has been involved in many of the biggest…

Foreword

Jon Meacham

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