The Captive American

What would our founding fathers think if they saw us today?
The Captive American offers a way out of the political and economic prisons we have let our leaders build.
Why has government lost the spirit of the old town meeting? Why does candidate after candidate solemnly promise to address our crisis, only to leave a trail of bigger problems? Why do half of us not even bother to vote?
Lee Brandenburg, a wealthy philanthropist from California’s Silicon Valley, was disturbed by where he saw our nation headed. With Andrew Lewis Shepherd’s expertise and a dedicated research team of Stanford University doctoral students, he set out to blow the lid off the status quo.
The result is a book that lays it on the line in uncompromising fashion. Brandenburg has uncovered the startling political process that controls national decision-making, the mechanisms that have taken over the system – because we let them – and the people behind the scenes who hold us captive.
Brandenburg aims to energize Americans for a new age of political involvement by arousing their anger at the abuses he reveals in this hard-hitting exposé.
Showing how Americans have been misled into believing that national issues are too complicated to understand, this book approaches even the most complex problems with honesty and common sense.
First published in 1987, The Captive American is an exceptionally readable book that is down-to-earth and entertaining, as the reader joins a political novice on his journey of discovery. With suggested reforms that are already sparking controversy, Lee Brandenburg lays out a blueprint for no less than a second American Revolution.
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Foreword; Why I Finally Wrote This Book; A Note from the Author
PART I LEADERSHIP LOST AND FOUND
- Chapter 1: A People Betrayed
- Chapter 2: Media and Mindsets
- Chapter 3: The Moat Around the Ivory Tower
- Chapter 4: The Seven Political Tribes
- Chapter 5: Money: The Mother’s Milk of Politics
- Chapter 6: You Can Fool All of the People
- Chapter 7: The Price We Pay for Lifetime Politicians
- Chapter 8: Send in the Clowns
- Chapter 9: New Choices
- Chapter 10: Euthanasia for the Lifetime Politician
PART II ECONOMICS: THE SEARCH FOR PROSPERITY
- Chapter 11: Reaganomics and Other Bedtime Stories
- Chapter 12: The Government Giveth – and Taketh Away
- Chapter 13: Government Spending: Out of Control
- Chapter 14: The Greeding of America
- Chapter 15: Institutions Gone Haywire
- Chapter 16: A New Path to Prosperity
PART III FOREIGN POLICY: THE SEARCH FOR PEACE
- Chapter 17: World Boss
- Chapter 18: Pentagon Follies
- Chapter 19: Behind Closed Doors
- Chapter 20: Why We Bet on the Wrong Horse
- Chapter 21: Can We Wage Peace?
PART IV BACK TO OUR FUTURE
- Chapter 22: The Lost Frontier
- Chapter 23: National Service: An Idea Whose Time Has Come
- Chapter 24: The National Think Tank
- Chapter 25: Goodbye, Captive American; Hello, Active American
Checklist for the Active American; Suggestions for Further Reading






